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THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES 



BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 



THE HIGH-ROADS OF THE ALPS 

A Motoring Guide to One Hundred Mountain Passes 

With 110 Itineraries, 102 Pliotograpbie Illustrations and 
11 Maps and Diagrams. 

SECOND EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED. 



" An epooh-making book." — Globe. 

"A mine of reliable information." — Daily Mail. 

" A splendidly useful and handBome book." — Pall Mall Gazette, 

" Not only accurate and interesting, but exhaustive and complete." 

LoEB Montagu in TTie Car. 

" The book is something more than a guide-book ; it is a companion." 

Automotor Journal. 

" Indispensable to every motorist in the vast region which extends from 
the French Eiviera to Vienna." — Observer. 

" A trustworthy guide to the Alps from end to end," — Illustrated Sporting 
and Dramatic News. 

" It promises to be a standard work .... In future it will be part and 
parcel of every Alpine automobilist's touring kit." — Standard. 



THE PASSES 

OF 

THE PYRENEES 

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO THE MOUNTAIN 
ROADS OF THE FRANCO-SPANISH FRONTIER 



BY 

CHARLES L. FREESTON, F.R.G.S. 

AUTHOR OF ' THE HIGH-ROADS OF THE ALPS ' 



WITH A FRONTISPIECE IN COLOUR BY HAYWARD YOUNG 

71 ILLUSTRATIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS MOSTLY BY THE AUTHOR 

8 MAPS AND 30 ITINERARIES 



CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 

NEW YORK 
1912 



DCeu 



Printed in England 



PREFACE. 

THE scheme of this book may be said to be 
based upon three postulates : — 

1. That all high ground is more likely to be 
picturesque than low, and is always worth seeking 
out for its own sake. 

2. That the mere fact that mountain roads 
in plenty are carried to greater heights than those 
of the average railway implies that tourists who 
trust to the latter alone must perforce miss much 
that is most beautiful in European scenery. 

3. That the Pyrenees, which are almost 
untouched by railways, form a worthy field of 
exploration for those who have already familiarised 
themselves with the beauties of the Alps. 

The extraordinary degree to which the 
P5rrenees have hitherto been a " no man's land " 
to the road tourist is duly set forth in the intro- 
ductory chapter ; while in the pages which follow 
will be found a detailed exposition of the attrac- 
tions of the Franco-Spanish frontier and its 
resources in the way of well-engineered highways. 

Aiming at no preciosity of style, such as too 
often mars a book of travel, I have endeavoured 



vi PREFACE. 

above all things to be practical, and have regarded 
as paramount the necessity for giving the fullest 
possible details as to surfaces, gradients, distances, 
and heights, based on my own actual experience 
of the routes described. The same method of 
treatment has been followed as with " The High- 
Roads of the Alps," in respect of which work I 
have received so many letters of thanks — even 
from tourists who have journeyed from as far 
afield as Western California with the sole object 
of visiting the scenes therein described — as to 
leave no room for any doubt as to its fulfilment 
of a want. All that the touring motorist requires 
to be convinced of by descriptive means is that a 
given territory is one which will reward him for a 
journey thither, and mere rhapsodising is alike 
superfluous and unwelcome ; but valuable data 
as to roads are as necessary as they are invariably 
difficult to obtain. Emphatically so has this been 
the case with the passes of the Pyrenees ; but I 
venture to hope that the complete itineraries 
which I have been able to compile may commend 
themselves to my fellow tourists, and pave the 
way to many pleasant wanderings. 

Save where otherwise indicated, the illustra- 
tions in this volume are reproduced from my 
own photographs. My acknowledgments are due, 
however, to my friend Mr. Hayward Young for his 
kindness in supplying the coloured frontispiece ; 



PREFACE. vii 

to M. Builles, of Ax-les-Thermes, who took several 
photographs especially for this work ; and also to 
Dr. F. Gomma, delegue of the Touring Club de 
France, from whom I have received much helpful 
information. 

C. L. F. 
Jtme, 1912. 



CONTENTS, 

PAGE 

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . v 

List of Illttsteations . . . . xi 

Chap. I. — Introductory — Some Popular Mis- 
conceptions — Misleading Guides — 
Summer v. Winter — A Galaxy of 
Good Mountain Roads . . . . 1 

Chap. II. — The Col du Tourmalet — A Lateral 
Route — Steep, but Picturesque — 
Verdant Valleys and Lofty Peaks 14 

Chap. III. — LucHON AND its Environs — Attractive 
Excursions — A Stiff Climb — The 
Vallee du Lys — A Run into Spain 26 

Chap. IV. — From LucHON to Ste. Marie- de-Campan 
— The Col de Peyresourde and the 
Col d'Aspin — A Splendid Journey 40 

Chap. V. — From Luz to Gavarnie — The Most 
Popular Run in the Pyrenees — A 
Visit to the Famous Cirque . . 53 

Chap. VI. — From Lourdes to Cauterets — The 
Attractions of Argeles — The Col 

DE SOULOR AND THE CoL d'AuBISQUE 66 

Chap. VII. — ^Through the Heart of the Ranges — 
Two Main Routes into Spain — The 
Col du Pourtalet and the Col du 

SOMPORT . . . . . . . . 76 

Chap. VIII. — From Toulouse to Mont-Louis — Some 
Famous Gorges — A Road-building 
Romance — The Col de Casteillou 92 

Chap. IX. — Six Eastern Passes — The Cols de la 
Perche, de Rigat, de Tosas, de 
TernIire, de la Bataillb, and de la 
Pradblle . . . . . . . . 104 



X CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Chap. X. — MoBB Eastern Passes — The Col du 
Perthfs — A Glorious Run over the 
Cols du Portel, des Sept-Frebes, 
de Marmare, and db Chioula — The 
Col de Puymorens . . . . . . 118 

Chap. XI. — Over the Col de Pradel — A Thril- 
ling Experience — From the Col db 
Marmare to the Cols de Port, de 
Portet, db Buret, and des Ares . . 133 

Chap. XII.— A Visit to Mas d'Azil— The Cols d'El 
BouiCH, DE Py, d'El Teil, and db 
Babourade, or Puivert . . . . 150 

Chap. XIII. — In the Basque Country — The Cols 
d'Osquish, de Roncevaux, db Maya, 
and de Velate — Biarritz and St. 
Jean-de-Luz . . . . . . . . 160 

Chap. XIV. — The Highest Road in the Pyrenees — 
The . Pas db las Casas and the 
Col de Fray-Miquel — A Primitive 
Republic . . . . . . . . 175 

Chap. XV. — How to reach the Pyrenees . . 184 

Chap. XVI.— The " Route DBS Pyrenees ". . .. 189 

Index . . 193 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS, 

/ 

Autumn in the Vallee du Lys . . . . . . Frontispiece 

To face page y 

A View of the Hospice de France, near Luchon . . 10 

A Typical Scene in the Pyrenees : On the Col du 

Tourrnalet Road . . . . . . , . . . . . 14 

N earing the Summit : A View of the Tourrnalet Pass . . 16 

The Summit of the Tourrnalet Pass . . . . . . 18 '^ 

The Tourrnalet Road, as seen from the Summit (6,961 feet) 20 ' 
On the Descent to Luz : A View Four Kilometres below the / 

Summit . . . . . . . . . . . . . , 22 

The End of a Stiff Climh : A View of the Hospice de France 

from below . . . . . . . . , . . . 26 '^ 

One Way of making a Garage : The Shelter in Front of the 

Hospice . , . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 

A View from above the Hospice de France, looking towards 

Luchon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 

The Pic de la Pique, as seen from the Hospice de France . . 32 
Waiting for the Triptyque : The Spanish Custom,-House at 

Les 36 

The Summit of the Col de Peyresourde . . . . . . 42 

At the Summit of the Col d'Aspin . . . . . . 44 

A View from the Summit of the Col d'Aspin . . . . 46 '^ 

A View of the Oavarnie Road . . . . . . . . 52 ' 

The Village of Gedre, as seen from the Gavarnie Road, 

looking towards Luz . . . . . . . . . . 54 

The Cirque de Gavarnie . . . . , . . . . . 56 

The Village of Gavarnie . . . . , . . . . . 58 ^ 

A Characteristic View of Cauterets . . . . . . 66 

The Beautiful Windings of the Cauterets Road . . . . 68 

La Montee de lAmagon, with the Pic Peguere beyond . . 70 

A View from the Summit of the Col de Soulor . . . . 72 ' 

The Summit of the Col d''Aubisque . . . . . . 74 

The French Custom-House at Gabas . . . . . , 76 ' 



Xll 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



To face jiMje 

The Pic du Midi d'Ossau, seen through a Heat Haze from the 

Col du Pourtalet . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 

A View from the Col du Somport Summit . . . . 80 '' 

On the Way to the Frontier, between Canfranc and the 

Summit of the Col du Somport . . . . . . . . 82 ' 

A Motor Diligence ascending the Somport Pass from the 

French Side . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 

The Castle of Saissac, between Revel and Carcassonne . . 92 • 
In the Old Cite de Carcassonne : A Corner of the Ramparts 94 
A View of the Town of Carcassonne, taken from the Battle- 
ments of the Old Cite . . . . . . . . . . 96 

The " Trou du Cure " 98 '^ 

A Halt in the Gorge de Pierre-Lys . . . , . . 100 

The Chateau d' Usson 100 

The Summit of the Col de Casteillou . . . . . . 102 

A View of Mont-Louis . . . . . . . . . . 104 

Puigcerda, at the Foot of the Col de Tosas route . . 106 - 

The Pont Sejournet, near Fontpedrouse . . . . . . 110 

The Fortified Town of Villefranche-de-Conflent . . . . 112 / 

The Abbaye de St. Martin-du-Canigou, near Vernet-les- 

Bains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 ' 

The Exit from the Gorges of Galamus . . . . . . 116 "^ 

The First Bend of the Col du Portel, on the Ascent from 

Quillan . . , . . . . . . . . . . . 118 

A Backward View of Belcaire, as seen from the Col des Sept- 

Freres 120 

A General View of Ax-les-Thermes . . . . , . 122 t 

The Windings of the Col de Puymorens Road, above i 

VHospitalet 126' 

On the Summit of the Col de Puymorens (6,292 feet) . . 128 

The Pont de VHarenc, on the Way to the Col de Puymorens 130 / 
The Little Town of Ur, at the Foot of the Col de Puymorens 

Route 132 ' 

The Village of La Fajolle, on the Col de Pradel Route . . 134 J 
Mr. J. T. Burton- Alexander and his \^-h.p. Austin at 

the Summit of the Col de Pradel . . . . . . 136 

A View on the Descent from the Col de Marmare to Luzenac 138 ' 

The Chdteau de Lordat . . . . . . . . . . 140 

The New Snow Refuge on the Summit of the Col de Portet 144 ' 



/ 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xiii 

To face 'page 

Another View of the Col de Portet, with Road-widening / 

Operations in Progress . . . . . . . . . . 146 

A Characteristic View from the Little-Jcnown Col des Ares 148 

The Grotto of Mas d'Azil, from the St. Girons Side . . 150 -^ 
The Curious Entrance to the Grotto of Mas d'Azil, from the 

Pamiers Side . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 

The Vale of Foix, as viewed from the Road, with the Castle 

in the Middle Distance . . . . . . . . . . 154 

The Chateau de Foix . . . . . . . . . . 156 

A View from the Col de Babourade, with the Castle of 

Puivert in the Background . . . . . . . . 158 

The Col de Roncevaux, or Port d'Ibaneta . . . . 160 

A View of the Col de Maya . . . . . . . . 166 

On the Grande Plage at Biarritz . . . . . . . . 168 

St. Jean-de-Luz, from the South-West . . . . . . 170 

Champions at Play : A View of the Famous Pelota Court 

at St. Jean-de-Luz . . . . . . . . . . 172 

The Boundary between France and Andorra . . . . 174 

On the Road to the Col de Fray-Miquel (8,022 feet) . . 176 

Another View of the Cirque dels Pessons . . . . 178 

A View of the " Route Nationale " from the Road to the 

Col de Fray-Miquel 180 

On the Ascent of the Col de Fray-Miquel . . . . 182 

The First Car in Soldeu 184 



MAPS, 

PAGE 

The Environs of Luchon, and the Mountain Roads to Ste. 

Marie . . . . . . . . , . . . , . 49 

The Neighbourhood of Gavarnie . . , . . . . . 61 

Four Passes between ArgeUs and Oloron-Ste.-Marie . . 85 
The Passes of the Eastern Pyrenees, between Bourg- 

Madame and Perpignan . . . . . , . . . . 109 

The Passes between Quillan and the Frontier of Spain . . 125 

The Passes between Puivert and Luchon . . . . . . 143 

The Passes of the Basses Pyrenees . . .. .. .. 163 

Sketch-Map and Contour of the Proposed " Route des 

Pyrenees " to face page 189 



In travelling a man must carry knowledge with him if he 
would bring home knowledge. — Boswell. 



CHAPTER L 

INTRODUCTORY — SOME POPULAR MIS- 
CONCEPTIONS — MISLEADING GUIDES — 
SUMMER V. WINTER — A GALAXY OF 
GOOD MOUNTAIN ROADS. 

AFTER the Alps— the Pyrenees. 
The sequence is a natural one for most 
people, I think ; and certainly, in my own 
case, after doing practically all the motoring that 
is to be done amongst the Alpine passes of France, 
Switzerland, Italy, and T3^ol, the desire to effect 
a transition of the kind named was irresistible. 
I determined to explore the Pyrenean ranges 
by car to the utmost pos: ^Ae degree, in the hope 
that what I myself learned I might usefully detail 
foi* the benefit of fellow motorists. 

For I had a definite suspicion, which events 
proved to be well founded, that there would be 
very much more to do in the way of pleasurable 
incursions into the mountains than was realised 
by even those to whom the Pyrenees were not 
wholly unknown territory. It is no new thing, of 
course, to drive a car southwards until face to 
face with Nature's barrier between France and 
Spain ; but as to what could be done there 
on arrival, I am bound to say that — whether 
from people who have actually been, or from 

B • 



2 THE PASSES OF THE PYREN*EES 

either fugitive articles or books — the informa- 
tion I could gather in advance was of the most 
attenuated kind. 

The fact is that automobilists in general have 
to realise the necessity of breaking free from the 
ideas that crystallised themselves during the 
railway era, ere they can grasp the length and 
breadth of the field of enjoyment that lies before 
them. In other words, though they themselves 
are no longer dependent upon the train as a means 
of getting to and fro, they are too apt to forget 
that the reputation of travel resorts almost every- 
where has been built up on a basis of rail com- 
munication, and to conclude accordingly that 
everything that is to be known is known already. 
They may go down to the Riviera by car instead 
of train ; but it is the pre-existence of the railway 
that has made them know that the Riviera is a 
district worth visiting, even if by other means, 
and they do not bestow sufficient thought upon 
the possibility of there being other regions worth 
visiting which the train has never reached at all. 
I ventured to point this out, in respect of Alpine 
territory, in " The High-Roads of the Alps," 
and have no cause to complain of the result, 
for many hundreds of automobilists have since 
toured extensively among passes of which they 
had not previously heard even the names. 

Serious reflection on what is a big subject will 
serve to show that, in the nature of things, the 
motorist should not merelj^ eschew the use of the 
train when touring for pleasure, but should get 



INTRODUCTORY. 3 

as far away as possible from the places where 
railway lines are laid. High ground and pictur- 
esqueness are inseparable factors ; but the railway 
contractor, for mechanical reasons, has avoided 
high ground wherever possible, as well as spoiling, 
in many cases, the tracts of territory which he 
has invaded. If the track itself has not defaced 
their natural beauties, population has followed 
the rails, and towns have grown up " like great 
wens," as Sir Martin Conway once said, around 
the terminal stations. 

Now, the average Englishman, it may be 
stated without hesitation, regards the Pjrrenees 
as a district to visit in winter, with October to 
April as the extreme limits. Pau is the place 
which most readily suggests itself to his mind, 
and that is essentially a winter resort. Many 
EngUsh people go annually in winter, moreover, 
to Biarritz, a place which, though not really 
in the Pjn^enees at all, is often the door by 
which winter visitors enter the district. The fact 
nevertheless remains that, with the single excep- 
tion of Pau, every one of the important Pyrenean 
centres has its proper season in the summer. 
Biarritz, for example, in August and Septem- 
ber is one of the busiest places in Europe, and 
Luchon, Lourdes, Bagneres-de-Bigorre, Cauterets, 
and many others which might be named, are 
all alive with French and Spanish visitors in the 
summer months, but are mostly left severely 
alone by the English. 

From the motoring point of view, therefore, 

B2 • 



4 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

the Englishman whose ideas are based upon prece- 
dent has no conception of what is possible in 
the way of mountaineering by car. One cannot 
climb roads that are buried in snow, and the man 
who takes his car to Biarritz in winter can only 
keep to comparatively low levels. A certain 
number of English motorists have visited the 
Pyrenees in the late autumn and early spring, but 
even thus their opportunities have been less 
extensive than if they had embarked upon a 
summer tour ; while what is even worse is the fact 
that, so far as all the evidence before me goes, 
they have been entirely unaware that there was 
anything else to be done but that which they 
have themselves accomplished between the dates 
named. 

And this idea is even encouraged and per- 
petuated in print. I find, for example, some 
eighty pages professing to be devoted to the 
Pyrenees in a book dealing with the motor routes 
of France ; but the astonishing fact has to be 
chronicled that these eighty pages virtually 
consist of a description of the low-level road from 
Biarritz to Narbonne, which does not touch the 
Pyrenees at all ! There is not a single mountain 
pass on the whole of this route, and it is just as 
absurd to speak of a journey of this kind as 
" doing the Pjrrenees " as if one were to drive 
from London to Margate and pretend to have 
travelled over the South Downs, or to have 
exhausted the resources of Great Britain by 
a journey along the Great North Road. 



INTRODUCTORY. 5 

Even more astonishing is it to find that the 
" Guide Taride," though pubhshed in France, 
devotes very little space to Pyrenean routes, 
and even then with ludicrous effect. Of one of 
the passes which it condescends to notice — the 
Col de Puymorens — the remark is made that it 
is " peu praticahle pour Us automobiles.'' Hardly 
practical, forsooth ! The car on which I crossed 
made the ascent with the utmost ease, and, in 
fact, covered the 28 kilometres from Ax to the 
summit in 40 minutes, rising close upon 4,000 ft. 
meanwhile. A road on which one can romp 
skywards at about 26 miles an hour is quite 
practicable enough to satisfy an old tourist like 
myself, if it does frighten the timorous M. Taride, 
whose description of the " perils " of the well- 
known Arlberg Pass in the Tyrol will always 
remain a humorous memory. 

Misled in this manner by volumes which are 
directly addressed to motorists, it is hardly to be 
expected that we should find much that is of 
value in the ordinary guide-books, if, forewarned 
with the knowledge that there are many pictur- 
esque passes which can be climbed by car in the 
Pyrenees during the summer, we endeavour to 
elicit some practical information on the available 
routes. Many of the passes which I have crossed 
are not even mentioned in " Baedeker " at all ; 
and, where actual mention is vouchsafed, the 
details given are of no practical service what- 
soever. 

Here, for example, is the sort of thing which 



6 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

greets one's researches. On page 184 of Baede- 
ker's " Southern France " there is the following 
reference : — 

" The road leads to the N. via Sorgeat 
" and the (6 m.) Col de Chioula to the (7J m.) 
" Col de Marmare (4,460 ft.) ; to Luzenac 
"(p. 183)." 

It can hardly be said that this offers an em- 
barrassment of riches in the way of facts concern- 
ing the two cols named; but out of curiosity 
one turns to page 183 for the reference to Luzenac, 
in the hope of discovering some indication as to 
whether it is preferable to descend to that town, 
or take the alternative route from the summit 
of the Col de Marmare to Belcaire. And this is 
what we find : — 

" Luzenac to Garanou, whence a road leads 
" to the m m.) Col de Marmare (p. 184)." 

Cross references, it may be conceded, are 
excellent things in an index, but can hardly rank 
as instructive, in the text, when as destitute of 
facts as those quoted above. It is sufficiently 
notorious by now, however, that guide-books, 
with the notable exception of the excellent 
Joanne series, pay no attention to the needs of 
the road traveller, and address themselves solely 
to the railway passenger and the climber. In 
any case, moreover, even if mountain roads were 
adequately described, they would still require 
picking out from a mass of other descriptive 
matter. 

I would ask the reader, therefore, to premise 



INTRODUCTORY. 7 

in the first place that summer, not winter, is the 
time for motoring in the Pyrenees. The late 
autumn is subject to the disabilities that road- 
repairing is in progress, and that the weather is 
uncertain. Winter, of course, means that the 
roads of any appreciable altitude are snowbound ; 
while the Pyrenean spring is brief and almost 
invariably unsatisfactory as regards weather. 
These facts notwithstanding, the majority of 
British automobilists who have done any motor- 
ing at all within measurable distance of the 
Pyrenean ranges have done so in conjunction 
with a journey to or from the Riviera. My 
whole contention, however, is that this is a false 
conception of the situation, and that one might 
just as well regard the Alps as unsuitable 
for summer travel because numbers of people 
go to various well-known resorts for winter 
sports. 

In the second place, it is necessary that I 
should now define the inducements for motor 
mountaineering among the passes of the Pyre- 
nees. Three questions must be answered at the 
outset : — 

(1) Are there many cols over which carriage- 
roads have been constructed ? 

(2) Are they safe and practicable ? 

(3) Are they picturesque, and worthy objectives 
for the tourist who has to drive right through 
France to reach them ? 

The mountain roads of the Pjrenees, it may be 
said at once, are by no means few in number, 

\ 



8 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

as the following list of those with which I propose 
to deal will show : — 

Col du Tourmalet. Col des Ares. 

Col d'Aspin. Col de Roncevaux. 

Col de Peyxesourde. Col de Tosas. 

Col du Somport. Pas de las Casas. 

Col du Pourtalet. Col de Fray-Miquel. 

Col de Soulor. Col de Bataille. 

Col de la Perche, Col Rigat. 

Col de Marmare. Col de Buret. 

Col de Chioula. Col d'el Bouich. 

Col des Sept Freres. Col d'el Tell. 

Col d'Aubisque. Col du Perthus. 

Col de CasteiUou. Col d'Osquish. 

Col de Puymorens. Col de Ternere. 

Col de Pradel. Col de la Pradelle. 

Col de Port. Col de Py. 

Col de Portel. Col de Maya. 

Col de Portet. Col de Velate. 
Col de Puivert or de Babourade. 

In addition to the foregoing there are a number 
of climbs which do not offer a through route, 
simply because the roads have not been carried 
across the range and into Spain ; nevertheless 
they lead to such picturesque spots that they 
cannot on any account be ignored by the tourist. 
By way of example one may mention the by-roads 
to the Cirque de Gavarnie, the Hospice de Luchon, 
Cauterets, and the Bains de Panticosa — excur- 
sions which involve going up a given road under 
conditions such as would lead no one to regret 
the subsequent descent. 

With one exception — that of the Col de 
Pradel, of which more anon — all these roads are 



INTRODUCTORY. 9 

perfectly safe. They show, nevertheless, more 
variety of type than the Alpine passes as regards 
width, surface quality, and gradients. While the 
major proportion of them are of good breadth and 
scientifically engineered, others are but second- 
class roads in respect of width and construc- 
tion alike ; they display, in fact, too great a 
partiality for straight lines, with corresponding 
accentuation of the gradients, in lieu of zigzags and 
"hairpin" bends of mathematical design. One 
may find gradients which even near the summit 
do not exceed a mere 5 per cent. ; while, on the 
other hand, one may have to breast a rise with 
figures no less formidable than 17 per cent. The 
surface quality is excellent on the first-class 
roads, and far from bad on most of those of the 
second class. 

To anyone surfeited with the glories of the 
Alps, the Pjrrenees might be expected, perhaps, 
to suffer by comparison. I can say emphatically, 
however, that this is not so. It is true that the 
altitudes of peaks and passes alike have a lower 
average than those of the Alps, but they make 
up whatever is lacking in this respect by \^rtue 
of distinctive charm. For one thing, the Pyrenees 
can boast of greater variety of colouring, whether 
of verdure or of rocky crags, and this is an im- 
portant factor where summer travelling and a 
consequent absence of snow are concerned. Many 
of the cols command far-reaching panoramas of 
amazing beauty, and the outlines of the mountains 
themselves more than challenge comparison with 



10 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Alpine peaks. In other words, there are fewer 
massive ranges presenting, as it were, a series of 
ridges, after the manner of a ploughed field on a 
colossal scale, even if high enough to be covered 
or flecked with snow ; the Pyrenean outlines are 
much oftener than not of the sugar-loaf variety, 
while frequently the field of vision is extensive 
enough to include a line of picturesque foot-hills, 
another series of higher hills in the middle distance, 
with a splendid array of yet loftier peaks beyond. 
The beauty of their outlines is particularly satis- 
fying when there is no added snow to complete 
the picture ; whereas in the Alps there are many 
mountains which are lofty enough to present a 
considerable amount of rock above the zone of 
trees in summer, and not necessarily of impressive 
outline, without being high enough to wear a 
carpet of eternal snow. 

Another distinctive feature of the Pjrrenees 
is the series of wonderful cirques, of which the 
Cirque de Gavarnie and the Cirque de Troumouse 
are noteworthy examples. At such places, in- 
stead of being confronted with an ordinary 
range, one finds oneself in the centre of a vast 
amphitheatre of towering peaks. Some of these 
cirques are only to be reached by climbers, but 
the most remarkable of all, that of Gavarnie, is 
all but attainable by road. 

The special glory of the Pyrenees, however, 
are the magnificent forests which cover the lower 
slopes. These are clothed with trees in riotous 
luxuriance. In the Alps, when one has risen 




A VIEW ABOVE THE HOSPICE DE FRANCE. 



INTRODUCTORY. 11 

from the plains, especially on the southern sides 
of the passes, with their plantations of walnut 
and olive trees, one usually ascends into a wood 
of pines or firs ; in the Pyrenees, however, there 
are countless forests of beeches, which themselves 
often cover the whole of a mountain slope, or, in 
the case of the higher peaks, lead up to the belt 
of pines and firs. The last named are almost 
inseparable from any picture of Alpine scenery ; 
the vegetation of the Pyrenees, however, is 
characterised by much less uniformity. 

As regards the pros and cons of road locomo- 
tion in the Pyrenees, it may be said that the 
amenities more than atone for the inconveniences. 
To take the latter first — the outstanding nuis- 
ances are the dogs and chickens. I am speaking, 
of course, of the relatively low-level roads along 
which one travels when on the way to a mountain 
route ; farmsteads one does not expect to find 
on the passes, for nearly all these routes are 
secluded in the extreme, and do not present a 
series of village after village for the greater part 
of the ascent and descent, such as are to be found, 
in fact, on almost every Alpine pass. 

Why the dogs of the Pyrenees are so truculent 
is a mystery to every driver of a car. Though 
English cars are scarce, there are plenty of French 
and Spanish vehicles on the roads, both low and 
high, and have been for some time past ; yet a 
large percentage of the dogs encountered will 
precipitate themselves in front of your car, and, 
after you have dodged them, will give chase as 



12 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

long as their breath will hold. With the chickens 
superadded, one takes pounds' worth of rubber 
out of one's tyres through the frequent applica- 
tion of the brakes. Other animals, however, give 
no trouble. I did not see a single frightened 
horse during my tour, save a loose one which was 
straying on the road. The mules, too, which are 
seen in great numbers — often half a dozen, or 
even more, to one vehicle — are quite tractable ; 
there is also an immense amount of ox traflS.c, 
but the beasts are extremely docile, and obey the 
teamster's wand with surprising quickness. 

In addition to the dogs and fowls, moreover, 
the timber waggons are doubly the curse of 
Pyrenean roads. They are very dangerous to 
meet or to overtake, owing to the length of their 
projections. One may come across them even 
in a narrow gorge, where there is barely room to 
pass. Still worse, however — and this applies, of 
course, to mountain routes in the Alps as well — 
is the effect of these lumbering vehicles upon the 
roads. Whenever and wherever you suddenly 
strike a loose surface on a mountain road, you 
may be almost certain that there is a timber 
depot on the line of route. If, therefore, you 
overtake a timber waggon, look out for a bad 
road, if you have not already struck it ; and, 
conversely, if you strike a bad piece of road, look 
out for a timber waggon, lest you be impaled at 
the next corner. 

Against these disabilities may be set the 
kindliness of the people, especially in the Western 



INTRODUCTORY. 18 

and Basses Pyrenees ; the moderate charges at 
the ordinary town hotels, as compared with the 
larger establishments in the fashionable resorts ; 
the charms and even splendours of the scenery ; 
and, above all, the delightful remoteness of many 
of the mountain routes which I propose to 
describe. Nowhere will you find on the upper 
heights of the passes a huge hotel such as has a 
place on almost every high road and in every 
lofty valley in Switzerland. The Pyrenees are 
almost entirely unspoiled ; and, as you forge 
your way up to this or that summit, you may 
even find, as a sign of the comparative rarity of 
man's presence, an eagle soaring overhead in 
slow and stately flight. 



CHAPTER IL 

THE COL DU TOURMALET— A LATERAL 
ROUTE — STEEP, BUT PICTURESQUE — 
VERDANT VALLEYS AND LOFTY PEAKS. 

THE highest summit in the Pyrenees which 
is part and parcel of a continuous journey 
is the Col du Tourmalet, though it is not 
actually the highest point which may be reached 
by road. It is a picturesque pass throughout, 
and in every way offers a fine and memorable 
excursion. As a climbing feat it is much harder 
in the tackling than the average Alpine pass, 
both by reason of the severity of its gradients and 
the nature of the road itself, which is narrow 
for the most part and almost entirely unfenced. 
Lest anyone should be affrighted, however, at 
the outset let me say that the pass is regularly 
traversed in the season by public -service cars ; 
and, if ordinary tourists can entrust themselves 
to the tender mercies of drivers of whom, and to 
vehicles of which, they know absolutely nothing, 
the private owner may surely embark on a 
journey of this kind in a car of which he knows 
the capabilities, and of which he himself has the 
controlling hand. 

I made the ascent of the Col du Tourmalet, as 
well as of other passes which I shall describe in 




A TYPICAL SCENE IN THE PYRENEES: ON THE COL DU TOURMALET ROAD 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 15 

due course, on the 18-h.p. Austin of my friend 
Mr. J. T. Burton- Alexander, well known in the 
memorable and much lamented days of auto- 
mobile racing as an amateur driver in various 
classic events. In the spring of 1911 I happened 
to mention to him one day at the Royal Auto- 
mobile Club that it was my desire to explore the 
Pyrenees from end to end by road, whereupon he 
kindly volunteered to make the journey with me 
in a new car of which he was shortly expecting 
delivery. We arranged to begin the tour some 
time in August ; but, owing to the exceptionally 
hot summer, we did not actually start until the 
last day of that month. Mr. Burton- Alexander's 
home, I should mention, is at Revel, some thirty 
miles south-east of Toulouse, and therefore within 
measurable distance of the Eastern Pyrenees. 
With the routes over which we proposed to travel 
he was in the main familiar ; but when it came 
to a question of picking out every col that could 
be found on the map — and some of them re- 
quired a large measure of patience and a strong 
magnifying glass to discover — there remained a 
sufficiency of terra incognita to make the tour inter- 
esting to himself, while for me the whole district 
was virgin ground. Partly because there was very 
little to be learned beforehand, and partly because 
I felt myself in good hands, I departed entirely 
from my usual practice of planning out every 
yard of the road in advance, with every itinerary 
duly scheduled, and entered upon the journey in 
a state of complete ignorance of what I was going 



16 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

to see. Under no other conditions, of course, 
should I have done anything of the kind, as it 
was contrary to my whole theory of touring ; but 
the circumstances were altogether exceptional. 

The car was admirably designed for touring 
work in every respect save one. The engine, 
of 110 mm. bore and 127 mm. stroke, was 
nominally of 18 h.p., and 30 '9 h.p. by R.A.C. 
rating ; but, as a matter of fact, it was rather 
more powerful, owing to the provision of a 
greater degree of lift than usual to the valves. 
The radiator also differed from standard pat- 
tern, Mr. Burton-Alexander having stipulated 
for the elimination of side tanks, in order to 
ensure that the water should circulate at all 
times through the honeycomb. The brakes 
were not only good in themselves, but were 
rendered still better by being lined with a 
material which the owner's railway experience 
had led him to adopt — namely, Ferodo. 

The springing was perfect, and never in my 
life have I floated so easily over rough patches, 
level crossings, and even caniveaux; it required 
something particularly bad of that nature 
to give any sense of jar whatever. As the 
weather was tropically hot, and we had 
plenty of running down to contemplate after 
the long ascents, the carburetter was adjusted 
with a liberal supply of air, and this, combined 
with the excellent radiation, kept us uniformly 
cool. No matter how much or how steeply 
we cHmbed, we never ran hot. Though very 




NEARING THE SUMMIT: A VIEW ON THE TOURMALET PASS. 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 17 

highly geared, the car had so ample a reserve 
of power that nothing proved serious in the 
way of gradients, although in one case we had 
to face a long ascent with a good deal of 17 
per cent. The only weak point in the car, other- 
wise perfect for mountaineering work, was the 
steering-lock. All the same, we had little or 
no reversing to do save on the Col de Pradel, 
an altogether exceptional route ; but our 
experiences there led Mr. Burton-Alexander 
to decide to have the lock altered when the 
trip was over. Would-be motor mountaineers 
cannot be too insistent in this matter of 
steering-locks ; the turning movement should 
be of the widest possible dimensions, and 
this detail of a car's specification should 
be considered before any thought is bestowed 
upon power or any other item w^hatsoever. 
Radiation should come a good second ; and, 
for the rest, any good standard car should be 
equal to the work required. 

The crossing of the Col du Tourmalet may 
be regarded in the light of an excursion from 
Bagneres-de-Bigorre to Luz, or as one stage in 
a circular trip embracing the two places named, 
and also Argeles and Lourdes. More properly, 
however, it should be considered as an important 
link in the great chain of passes by which one 
may cross the Pyrenees from end to end with 
the minimum of descents to the plains. For 
the moment, however, we are not concerned 
with discussing through routes, nor even circular 

c * 



18 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

tours, but will take the Col du Tourmalet road 
as a separate entity, and deal with its connecting 
links at a later period. 

Either, therefore, by way of the mountain 
route over the Col d'Aspin, or by the gentle 
rise from Bagneres-de-Bigorre, one finds one- 
self at the foot of the Tourmalet Pass at the 
village of Ste. Marie-de-Campan, near to which 
the River Tourmalet effects a junction with the 
River Adour. As Ste. Marie-de-Campan has 
an altitude of 3,093 feet, while that of the Col 
du Tourmalet is 6,961 feet, the ascent is one of 
3,868 feet in 17 kilometres. With the River 
Tourmalet on the left, one breasts a moderate 
rise, on a somewhat narrow road ; and, before 
one has proceeded very far, a notice-board 
is passed which bears an intimation altogether 
unique in my experiences of mountain climbing. 
In imperative terms one is warned to verify 
both one's brakes and the power of one's motor ! 
There is no need, however, for alarm. Inci- 
dentally it may be remarked that, if your 
brakes are very good and your motor is some- 
what weak, you have chosen the best way 
to cross the pass ; but, if you have ample con- 
fidence in your motor, but somewhat less in 
your brakes, it is better to approach the pass 
from Luz. In other words, whereas the 
gradients range on the Ste. Marie-de-Campan 
side from 8 to 11 per cent., they have stretches 
on the other side of as much as 16 per cent. 
For some six kilometres, during which the 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 19 

village of Gripp is passed, the rise does not 
exceed 100 feet per kilometre ; but a short 
way beyond a depot of the famous observatory 
of the Pic du Midi de Bigorre, and a cascade 
on the right, the Tourmalet river is crossed by a 
bridge, and the gradient becomes much steeper. 
It is a case of second-speed work until Just 
before a refuge is reached, and then for several 
hundred yards one is down to the first speed. 
The noble Pic du Midi de Bigorre stands out 
prominently on the right, flanked by grassy 
slopes. After a stretch of slightly moderated 
gradient the first speed has once more to be 
resorted to. The road is practically straight 
for a time, and might have been much better 
graded, as there are no obstacles to the creation 
of scientific windings ; the absence of these, 
however, is accounted for by the fact that this 
is a lateral road, and not an international high- 
way across the frontier. 

More striking peaks come into view ahead, 
while a backward glance will afford a startling 
revelation of the height to which the car has 
climbed. For a time we are on second speed 
again, but when crossing a broad prairie the 
first comes into play once more, and we ascend 
steadily at fourteen miles an hour. At three 
kilometres from the summit it again becomes 
possible to use the second speed. The road 
is mostly of good surface, with only occasional 
patches of small stones in the centre, but ideally 
should be much wider, as well as protected 

C2 * 



20 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

at least by sugar-loaves at the edge. Through- 
out this crossing of the " alps," or upper pastures, 
the scene is dominated by the rugged Pic du 
Tourmalet. At last the road begins to wind 
in zigzags, and becomes rather rougher in 
places. Then the final kilometre stone is 
reached, and in a very short time we are on the 
col itself, between two grey banks. 

I have mentioned speed-changes in order 
to afford as far as possible a basis from which 
drivers generally may derive some indication 
of what will be probable in their own case. 
The engine dimensions of the car on which I 
myself ascended the pass have already been 
stated, and naturally many tourists will have 
more powerful motors at their command ; but 
for the benefit of those with even smaller engines 
I may point out that their cars are almost 
certain to be much lower-geared than was the 
Austin. Whenever the time came to change from 
first to second, and the engine was accelerated 
accordingly, I watched the speedometer index 
creep up to twenty miles an hour before the 
change was made ! 

The ascent has been picturesque throughout, 
but even more striking is the scene unfolded 
at the summit, which affords magnificent and 
far-reaching views in both directions, whether 
one looks backwards towards the verdant valley 
of Gripp, or directs one's gaze down to the 
Vallee de Bastan and the broad ranges of peaks 
above and beyond. 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 21 

No one who has experienced it will readily 
forget the descent of the Tourmalet Pass from 
east to west. To the driver it is memorable 
by reason of the careful hold which he must 
maintain upon the car throughout ; to the 
more fortunate passengers, provided they are 
not nervous, the journey is a constant delight 
by reason of the beauties of the scenery, which 
increase rather than decrease the farther one 
goes. To take the driving first, I may say that 
whether one regards it as difficult or easy depends 
entirely upon the point of view. To some 
drivers the sight of a ribbon road winding itself 
for miles below them in numerous lacets induces 
an attack of cold shivers. Personally, how- 
ever, I much prefer a zigzag road, provided 
the curves are of good radius, for a road con- 
structed on these lines is necessarily of scientific 
design. The Tourmalet road, however, from the 
summit to Bareges has scarcely any " hairpin " 
corners, and simply follows the lines of the 
descending valley, with a corresponding increase 
in gradient ; in fact, there is a good deal of 16 
per cent. The descent is therefore a matter of 
brake control entirely. For several kilometres, 
moreover, the road is intersected by numerous 
caniveaux, which need to be treated with very 
great respect. Other factors which compel par- 
ticular attention are the narrowness of the 
fairway and the absence of any fencing, for a 
considerable way down at all events. These 
various factors, therefore, point to one con- 



22 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

elusion, and that is — Festina lente ; the cani- 
veaux would themselves compel this policy even 
if the descent were inappreciable. 

The leisurely pace, however, at which one 
glides over the opening stages of the descent 
serves to afford a longer opportunity for admir- 
ing the magnificent outlook. Incidentally it 
may be mentioned that, two kilometres from 
the summit, one may notice on the right the 
huts of Thou, from which is available the 
shortest ascent to the summit of the Pic du 
Midi de Bigorre. 

The lower one descends the better, in some 
respects, the road becomes, and evidences are 
forthcoming of a desire to make the pass rank 
as a grande route thermale. In several places 
the road has been widened, and occasionally 
with the addition of a substantial stone parapet. 
It is clear that the improvements are being 
effected in an upward direction from Bareges, 
and in all probability, therefore, the ameliora- 
tion will shortly extend right up to the summit, 
and possibly even the caniveaux will disappear, 
though it is not an easy matter to eliminate 
gullies that are caused by mountain torrents. 

Some nine kilometres from the summit the 
hamlet of Pourtazous-Devant is reached, and 
then follows a steep descent of a kilometre to 
the town of Bareges, through the long main 
street of which it is desirable to drive gently. 
Beyond the town the road continues to fall 
steeply, but its width and surface quality alike 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 23 

are very much improved, and the latter may 
even be accounted superb. Equally so are the 
prospects on every side as one descends still 
farther into the valley of the Bastan. On the 
left are wooded slopes carpeted with grass of 
vivid green, and offering a sharp contrast to 
the rugged outlines of the lofty peaks ahead ; 
very remarkable, too, is the beautiful colouring 
of the massif on the right, with its bright orange 
tints intermingled with green. 

After describing several windings the road 
passes the villages of Betpouey, Viella — not 
to be confounded with a Spanish town of the 
same name, near Luchon — and Esterre, and 
eventually reaches Luz (2,247 feet), a small 
but charmingly situated town, and noteworthy 
from the fact that it is from here that one makes 
the popular excursion to the famous Cirque 
de Gavarnie. The total descent has been one 
of 4,714 feet in 18 kilometres, an average of 
over 400 feet per mile. 

The way in which the Tourmalet road is 
tranchee, as the French say, along the mountain 
side may readily be gathered from the illustration 
facing page 20. Deep below on the right may 
be seen the windings of the Bastan river, which 
runs all the way down the valley to Luz. The 
best idea of the road itself, however, where 
the descent is concerned, is afforded by the 
illustration opposite p. 22 ; it will be recognised 
at a glance how narrow is the fairway. Formerly 
the road was somewhat dangerous by reason of 



24 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

its shaly character and consequent looseness 
at the edges, but it has been improved in this 
respect by reinforcements where necessary. The 
moment before the photograph was taken the 
road was entirely blocked by cattle, but they 
had begun to move away ere the camera 
shutter was actually clicked. In one respect, 
of course, the photograph is not true to nature, 
as it does not show the steepness of the down 
grade. Few people, other than photographers 
themselves, stop to reason as to the impossibility 
of showing a steep fall correctly ; but it is obvious 
that if the camera is held in a horizontal position 
the road will not come within the range of the 
lens at all, owing to the steepness of the drop. 
The camera must be depressed accordingly, and 
all down grades in photographic work are, there- 
fore, more or less reduced to the same angle of 
inclination. With up grades it is less difficult 
to represent the correct angle, save in the case 
where the camera has to be raised to take in a 
mountain peak. 



ITINERARY. 




The Col 


DU TOURMALET. 


Place. 

Bagneres-de-Bigorre 
Pont de Gerda 


Altitude. 
(Feet.) 
1,824 


Intermediate Progressive 

Distances. Totals. 

{Kils.) {Kils.) 

2i 2| 


Bridge over the 






Adour 


— 


3i 6 


Campan 


— 


H n 



THE COL DU TOURMALET. 25 

Intermediate Progressive 

Place. Altitude. Distances. Totals. 

Ste. Marie-de-Cam- 

Pan - - - 3,093 5| 13 

Gnpp - - - 3,497 4^ 17^ 

Fork to Artigues - — 1^ 19 
Depot de I'Obser- 

yatoire - - _ | 19^ 

Bridge - - - _ * 20 

Refuge - - - _ 3| 23* 

Bridge - - - __ 1^ 25" 

Summit - - - q^qqi 5 30 

Cabanes de Thou - — li 311 

Cantine - - _ 1 32^ 

Pont de la Gaubie - — 4 36x 

Pont de Tournabout — 1^ 38 

Pourtazous-Devant — 1^ 391 

Bareges - - — \ ^Qi 

VieUa - - - 4,688 6^ 47 

Luz - - - 2,247 1 48 



CHAPTER III 

LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS — ATTRAC> 
TIVE EXCURSIONS— A STIFF CLIMB—THE 
VALLfiE DU LYS-A RUN INTO SPAIN. 

UNLIKE many of the best-known resorts 
in the Pyrenees or within their neigh- 
bourhood, Luchon is a town which can 
on no account be omitted from one's itinerary. 
The seeker after mountain passes, and there- 
fore scenery which is grandly picturesque, may 
very well give places like Pau, Lourdes, 
Tarbes, Bagneres-de-Bigorre, and St. Gaudens 
the go-by unless, after crossing the mountains 
from end to end, he chooses to return by a low- 
land route. Luchon, however — or Bagneres-de- 
Luchon, to give it its full name — is not only 
much nearer to the heart of the mountains than 
any other town, being quite close, in fact, to 
the Spanish frontier, but is of itself well worth 
visiting in the season, which is from July to 
September, although the climatic conditions make 
it quite possible to time one's visit earlier, or 
to stay even into the autumn. 

The town has some 3,500 inhabitants, which 
is a considerable number for the Pyrenees, but 
in the height of the season its floating popu- 
lation is enormous, as the hotels are numerous 




THE END OF A STIFF CLIMB: A VIEW OF THE HOSPICE DE FRANCE 
FROM BBLOW. 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 27 

and of appreciable size. Its popularity is 
primarily due to its attractive position, and 
to the extraordinary wealth of its resources as 
a thermal station. Indeed, its springs appear 
calculated to cure almost all the diseases incident 
to humanity. In this respect, it is true, it 
has a considerable amount of competition to 
face, for the number of thermal resorts in 
the Pyrenees and their environs is truly extra- 
ordinary ; they exist literally in scores. It must 
be a difficult task for the valetudinarian who 
goes southwards in search of health to know 
which of the rival places to choose from that 
point of view ; but incidentally I may mention 
that a leading physician of Luchon, Dr. Ferras, 
has published an excellent book under the title 
of " De la Medication Sulphuree," in which he 
provides an admirable summary of the claims of 
the different thermal stations ; and, though him- 
self identified with Luchon, he is commendably 
impartial in his judgments. 

Luchon is charmingly situated, at an altitude 
of 2,066 feet, in a beautiful and spacious valley, 
well wooded and well watered. On its grassy 
hillsides are many summer villas of attractive 
design ; in addition to the large array of hotels 
there are innumerable shops fronting on to wide 
thoroughfares ; there are, of course, elaborate 
bathing establishments, and a casino, a public 
park, an English garden, and a golf course. 
In the season there are all manner of diversions 
for visitors, including a battle of flowers, horse- 



28 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

racing, paper-chases, pigeon-shooting, automobile 
corsos fleuriSf a great annual fair on September 24th, 
outdoor theatricals, etc., etc. Of late, winter 
sports, such as ski-ing and bob-sleighing, have 
been introduced ; and there are even fox-hunting, 
boar-hunting, and bear-hunting to be enjoyed. 
Luchon, however, is chiefly remarkable as a 
centre for numerous excursions, whether by 
road, mule-path, or footpath. 

For the automobilist there are many delight- 
ful trips, especially if he is making a lengthy 
stay ; but, if he is travelling from east to ^vyest, 
or vice versa, some of these will form part and 
parcel of his through route. He should on 
no account, however, be content merely with 
passing through the town, and should, at all 
events, do the three excursions which I pro- 
pose to describe herewith. 

The first is a visit to the Hospice de France, 
a trip which particularly commends itself to 
the driver of a good car, as it provides a distinctly 
sporting climb. He must leave the town by the 
R/Oute d'Espagne and follow the left bank of 
the River Pique. The road rises quickly ; and 
let it be said at once that, as it is cut in almost 
a straight line through the Forest of Charuga, 
and is not eased at all by means of lacets, it 
offers a somewhat stiff proposition in the way 
of gradients. As a matter of fact they attain 
a maximum of no less than 17 per cent., and 
there is necessarily a good deal of first-speed 
work. The steepest portions are encountered 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 29 

after crossing the Pont de Ravi ; on the right 
should be noted a by-road leading to the Vallee 
du Lys, of which more anon. 

There is, of course, nothing to which any good 
car should not be readily equal so far as gradients 
are concerned, in these days when an expedition 
to the test hill at Brooklands, with its 25 per cent, 
rise, is often made the necessary preliminary to 
the purchase of a car. From any discussion, 
however, of mountain climbing the important 
factor of radiation can never be excluded ; so I 
can only say that, though it was a blazingly hot 
day when I ascended the road in question, no 
difficulty whatever was experienced in this direc- 
tion. The water did not boil ; and, when we 
removed the radiator cap at the summit, we 
found that the tank was practically full. On the 
other hand, we found two cars at rest in the curious 
but picturesque little garage facing the Hospice, 
and their drivers were very much surprised that 
our car had ascended without boiling. They 
said that it was quite the usual thing for water 
in the radiators to boil even if actual overheating 
were not experienced ; all of which goes to show 
that, on the average motor-car, radiation is not 
studied to anything like a sufficient degree. 

We cannot everlastingly be expected to do all 
our touring on the level of the plains, and it is no 
earthly use for automobile manufacturers to lay 
stress on the wonderful abilities of their cars, 
and their prowess on gradients of 1 in 3, unless 
these same vehicles can be guaranteed to cope 



30 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

with climbs of appreciable length. The mountain 
roads are there to be tackled, and are not likely 
to be altered. They were ascended by horse- 
drawn vehicles before motor-cars were invented, 
and it is somewhat late in the day to suggest that 
the motor-car is unable to perform satisfactorily 
under conditions to which the horse-drawn vehicle 
is equal. 

It is all a question, of course, of standard ; 
there is no inherent difficulty about providing 
ample radiation, and the problem resolves itself 
into a matter of the individual maker's knowledge 
of existing roads, and his estimate of the degree 
of provision which he must make accordingly. 
The roads themselves are no new thing, so far as 
concerns those which are in any way difficult ; 
while, as for the future, I have only to point out 
that all modern roads over mountain routes are 
cut in scientific fashion, and have maximum 
gradients of not more than 8 per cent., or 1 in 
12 J. Such is the case, for example, on the 
beautiful roads over the Pordoi and Falzarego 
Passes in the Austrian Tjnrol, which rise to great 
heights, while the new Jaufen Pass, I believe, 
does not even exceed 6 per cent. Although it 
so happens, moreover, that the Pyrenean roads 
with which I have already dealt show gradients 
of considerable severity, I may mention here that 
the majority of those which will be described 
hereafter are well-graded highways, with fine 
sweeping bends, and nothing in any way terrific 
in the way of gradient figures. 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 31 

And before leaving this aspect of a question 
which is of supreme importance to automobile 
tourists, let me make one thing plain beyond all 
possibility of misconception. It is no impossible 
standard which the motor mountaineer has set 
up in respect of either efficiently cooled cars or 
cars with satisfactory locks. The only standard 
that the voice of experience needs to enjoin is 
the standard that has already been attained. 
There are cars in plenty which can ascend a 
mountain pass without even the suspicion of over- 
heating troubles ; and equally is it true that there 
are cars in plenty which are provided with locks 
that are adequate to all requirements. On 90 
per cent, of the "hairpin" corners of the passes 
of the Alps, the Apennines, or the Pyrenees, a 
car with a good lock can get round without even 
having to reverse, while there is not a single one 
at which the driver of such a car need have any 
fear of being " tied up in a knot." It is simply 
a matter of " What man has done, man can do," 
and one merely asks that makers who have not 
yet given sufficient consideration to the items of 
lock and radiation should cast an eye over the 
cars in which these requirements have been 
satisfactorily fulfilled. 

The road from Luchon to the Hospice de 
France represents a rise of 2,396 feet in II kilo- 
metres, and is narrow but of fairly good surface, 
and for the most part pleasantly shaded from the 
sun. At a distance of three kilometres from the 
summit an entrancing view is obtained of a 



32 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

grassy sward deep below on the right. After 
a few yards of descent, we swing round to the 
right, and ascend very steeply through a beautiful 
beech wood, which brings us up to the charming 
plateau on which the Hospice stands. To all 
intents and purposes the building is now an hotel, 
and serves a dual purpose, for it is not only the 
objective of carriage visitors from Luchon, but 
is a fied d terre for mountaineers. The Hospice, 
in fact, is the focussing point of three important 
mule-paths which lead over the mountains into 
Spain by way of the Port de Venasque, the Port 
de la Mounjoyo, and the Port de la Picade. Some 
day, no doubt, the Spanish authorities will wake 
up and build a road on their side of the Pyrenees 
also, and so add to the, at present, restricted 
number of main carriage routes across the frontier. 
A year or two ago the possibility might have been 
deemed as remote as the Greek Kalends ; but, 
as we shall see later, King Alfonso's motoring 
enthusiasm has had a wonderfully stimulating 
influence, and the existing roads on the Spanish 
side of the frontier have lately been improved 
out of all recognition. 

For those who are not averse to the idea of 
combining a little pedestrianism with their motor- 
ing, the Hospice makes an admirable centre for 
excursions to splendid points of view ; or, in 
default of walking, there are mules and horses, 
of course, to be had. Particularly fine is the 
journey to the Port de la Picade (8,234 feet), from 
which a magnificent panorama is afforded. If 




THE PIC DE LA PIQUE, AS SEEN FROM THE HOSPICE DE FRANCE. 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 88 

disinclined, however, for aught of this kind, or 
pressed for time, the motoring tourist may at 
least be advised to stroll through the Forest of 
Sajust to the Cascade du Parisien, a matter of 
ten minutes' walk only. In any case he should 
be in no hurry to set the car going again, for 
the scenery in the immediate neighbourhood of 
the Hospice is truly delightful ; I, for one, could 
sit for hours simply studying the noble outlines 
of the Pic de la Pique, and the woods with which 
it is luxuriantly clothed almost up to its very 
summit. 

When the word, however, must at last be 
given to resume the journey, one may descend 
the road through the Forest of Charuga down 
to the Pont de Ravi, feeling the while no small 
degree of pity for the poor horses one encounters 
painfully toiling up the steep slope which the car 
had ascended without a falter. The bridge is 
just half-way to Luchon, and, turning to the 
left, along the road mentioned above, one finds 
oneself climbing steeply along a winding route 
towards the Vallee du Lys. This is a favourite 
after-luncheon excursion with Luchon visitors, 
and the road is crowded with cars and horsed 
carriages, so that careful driving is essential. 
The gradient is as stiff as 13 per cent, in places, 
and the ordinary carriages, though drawn by two 
horses, compare very unfavourably with the cars 
in consequence. All the cockers in this region, 
by the way, wear red waistcoats of very brilliant 
hue. 

D 



34 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

It is only five kilometres to the centre of the 
valley, and less to the point where it opens out 
smilingly from the narrow and winding lane. 
Soon one reaches the very heart of an amphitheatre 
of extraordinary picturesqueness. The moun- 
tains rise so steeply from the plain that until 
after mid-day it is entirely in shadow ; hence its 
popularity as an afternoon excursion. On the 
left is a gloriously wooded slope of beeches, sur- 
mounted by firs — the Montague de Bouneou ; 
on the left the Cascade d'Enfer falls from a 
great height on to giant boulders, and forces its 
way in turbulent fashion to the broad stream 
which winds along the valley to the Pont de 
Ravi ; while above all towers a majestic array of 
lofty peaks, with the grand Glacier de Crabioules, 
the Glacier de Maupas, and the Glacier de Graou^s 
glittering in the sun. How much one may see 
of the glories of the neighbourhood depends 
upon the energy of the individual tourist ; but 
certainly some amount of pedestrianism should 
be undertaken. The heart-shaped Cascade du 
Coeur — hence its name — is within fifteen minutes' 
walk, and that of the Gouffre-Infernal within 
thirty ; higher still is the Cascade Montigny. 
From smiling pastures to wooded slopes, from 
cascades to glaciers, and from glaciers to 
rocky pinnacles, the Vallee du Lys is a region 
of manifold attractiveness, and one which 
will linger long in the memories of those who 
visit it. 

However much or little, nevertheless, one 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 85 

indulges one's activities, one may spend a pleasant 
hour or so on the little plateau facing the chalet- 
hotel du Pavilion des Cascades ; and if, as any 
self-respecting Englishman will do, one orders 
afternoon tea, let not the attentions of the pro- 
prietor go unheeded in one respect. He will 
recommend des crepes as une specialite de la maison. 
Refuse them not ; they are served fresh and hot 
from the kitchen, and are of a daintiness and 
delicacy which would convert the most pro- 
British of patriots to a belief in the superiority 
of the French cuisine. 

It will have been realised ere now that the 
importance of the two trips above described is 
not to be measured by mileage ; but we may 
now consider an expedition which does involve 
an appreciable amount of running. This is a 
journey to Viella, by way of St. Beat, a distance 
of 57 kilometres, or 114 kilometres out and 
home. 

Road, river, and rail are in close touch with 
each other all the way along the Luchon vaUey, 
and the line is crossed three times — first at 
Antignac, then at Guran, and again a short dis- 
tance farther on. The road is excellent through- 
out, and bordered by richly clothed hills. When 
nearing Guran let not the passengers fail to turn 
their heads and look right back upon the superb 
view of the Port de Venasque, rising in snowy 
majesty above Luchon ; on the return journey 
its glories may be enjoyed to even greater advan- 
tage. Soon a by-road is encountered on the 

D2 



86 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

right, 16 kilometres from Luchon, and leads in 
five kilometres to St. Beat, over a surface that 
is now loose and dusty. 

St. Beat is a little town of less than 900 inhabi- 
tants, and is centred picturesquely in a defile 
through which flow the swiftly running waters 
of the Garonne. From its position near the 
frontier it has been known for centuries as the 
"Key of France," but is chiefly famous for its 
marble quarries. It was from these that the 
Romans brought the stone of which the Trajan 
Column was built, while the fountains of Versailles 
fall into basins of marble from the same source. 
High above the town rise the white crags of the 
Cap det Mount, of almost Dolomitic shape, while 
half-way up the mountain side stand the ruins 
of a fortified castle, with a colossal statue of the 
Virgin as a prominent landmark. If one has 
occasion to stay at St. Beat, the little Hotel de la 
Terrasse will be found an agreeable resting-place ; 
its dining-room is cool in the hottest of weather, 
being open and on the very brink of the 
Garonne. 

Southward one turns if bound for Viella, and 
for several kilometres the road proves very dusty, 
as a tramway is being laid alongside, and will 
eventually run up to the frontier. A big caniveau 
is soon encountered ; in wet weather it would 
be a water-splash, but in summer even the 
watercourses on the neighbouring hillsides are 
themselves dried up. So dusty does the road 
eventually become that even a cyclist ambling 




WAITING l-'OR THE TRIPTVQUE: THE SPANISH CUSTUM-HOUSE AT LES. 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 87 

at eight miles an hour raises a veritable cloud, 
and one can hardly see an approaching horse 
for the dust which it scatters with its fore 
feet! 

A halt must be made at Le Seriail for the 
French custom-house (not marked on the Taride 
map) ; but, as you are obliged to come back the 
same way, the doiianiers will stamp your triptyque 
or not, just as you prefer. The actual frontier is 
reached a couple of kilometres or so farther on, 
where the Pont du Roi spans a ravine. 

To one's intense surprise the road changes its 
character as soon as the bridge is crossed, and the 
surface becomes really excellent ; it was not 
always so ! At the first Spanish village an 
outpost official stops the car and asks to see your 
papers, but the actual custom-house where these 
are stamped is at Les, three kilometres farther. 
Prepare for a little Spanish leisureliness in the 
operation, and see also that the triptyque is not 
stamped in the section for the final exit. The 
officials are good fellows, however, and pleased to 
see a car, while they are doubly pleased if you 
have a camera and will photograph them in front 
of the aduana. 

Thenceforward the road undulates to the next 
village, and rises imperceptibly to Viella. The 
Garonne runs alongside, pale blue with glacier 
water, and bordered by grassy slopes and thickly 
wooded hills. There is a small military depot 
at one of the intervening villages, and here we 
took a Spanish officer on board and gave him a 



88 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

lift into Viella, for which he was duly grateful. 
Arrived at this little town (3,156 feet) one has no 
alternative but to turn back, unless one cares to 
run up to the Baths of Arties. Before leaving 
Viella, however, a man steps up to the car and 
hands in a written request for 90 centimes, to- 
wards the cost of the maintenance of a bridge 
which otherwise one would not have noticed at all ! 
No regret is experienced on retracing one's 
wheel-tracks along the Vallee d'Aran, for the 
scenery unfolds fresh beauties on the homeward 
journey. The run is thoroughly enjoyable, and 
one is sorry to leave Spain for the time being 
and cross the frontier for the dusty drive to St. 
Beat. The bad stretch is soon traversed, how- 
ever, and once on the main road to Luchon again 
there is a delightful spin in prospect ; and, when 
the first level crossing is reached, let driver and 
passengers alike keep a keen look-out for the 
impressive view of the Port de Vanasque to which 
reference has already been made above. 



ITINERARIES, 




EXCURSIONS FROM LUCHON. 


I. — The Hospice de France and Hotelleries du Lys. 




Intermediate Progressive 


Place. Altitude. 


Distances. Totals. 


(Feet.) 


(Kils.) (Kils.) 


Luchon - - 2,066 


— _, 


Lapade - - — 


^ H 


Pont de Ravi - - — 


i 5 


Hospice de France - 4,462 


5| lOf 


Back to Pont de 




Ravi - - - — 


5f 164 


Hotelleries du Lys - 3,612 


5 21^ 



LUCHON AND ITS ENVIRONS. 89 





IL-Viella. 










Ird&rmediate 


Progresaivt 


Place. 


AltUvde. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Luchon - 


- 2,066 


— 


— 


Moustajon 


_ 


3 


3 


Antignac 


. - — 


n 


4i 


Guran - 


— 


9 


13i 


Cierp 


— 


2h 


16 


Marignac 


— 


H 


17i 


St. B6at 


- 1,722 


3 


20i 


Arloz 


— 


3 


23| 


Fob 


— 


3 


26i 


Le Seriail (French 






Customs) - 


— 


n 


28 


Pont du Roi - 


— 


3i 


3H 


Pontau 


— 


3 


34| 


Les 


— 


2 


36^ 


Bosost - 


— 


3 


39^ 


Fork 


— 


H 


41 


Bridge across 


the 






Garonne 


— 


2i 


m 


Aubert - ; 


— 


8 


5\\ 


Viella - 


- 3,165 


4 


56i 



CHAPTER IV. 

FROM LUCHON TO STE. MARIE^DE^CAMPAN 
—THE COL DE PEYRESOURDE AND THE 
COL D^ASFIN— A SPLENDID JOURNEY. 

A MORE striking example could hardly be 
found of the pleasures of motor mountain- 
eering, as compared with meandering along 
the plains, than the journey from Luchon to Ste. 
Marie by way of the Col de Pejrresourde and 
the Col d'Aspin. There is too great a tendency 
among automobile tourists to take only passes 
which offer through routes from one country to 
another, or which are the only way of covering 
a given stretch of territory essential to their 
itinerary. To my mind, however, the chief sport 
of mountain driving consists in betaking one- 
self to high ground whenever and wherever it 
can be found — always provided that there is a 
practicable road. There is everything to gain by 
this method of touring, and nothing to lose ; the 
heat and dust of the plains, lu-ban traffic, un- 
attractive outlooks, and the monotony of travelling 
along the flat — from all these one escapes when 
fl3dng to higher ground. Paramount above all 
else, however, is one factor upon which too much 
stress cannot possibly be laid ; it applies, moreover, 
to th^ Alps of France, Switzerland, Austria, and 



LUCHON TO STE. MARIE-DE-CAMPAN. 41 

Italy alike ; equally to the Apennines, and also, 
as my recent experiences have shown, to the 
PjTrenees. In a word it is this, and it should 
be accepted as an axiom by every tourist with 
a car : 

The higher one goes the better the road. 

Valley roads in mountainous country are 
almost invariably dusty, and have to bear the 
burden of all the traffic from town to town, while 
in the neighbourhood of any particularly large 
town, of course, there is always a good deal of 
local traffic to be reckoned with in addition. 
Badness of surface sometimes extends to the 
lower slopes of a mountain road, especially if 
there is an important village some way up, and 
still more especially if timber-cutting is practised. 
So long, however, as the pass is a definitely 
engineered undertaking, and not a mere mule- 
path magnified into an inferior carriage-road, the 
primary construction of the roadway is good 
throughout, and in the nature of things remains 
better at the top than where it is subject to local 
traffic. 

Individual exceptions may be found, no doubt, 
from time to time, especially if the mountain road 
is not one of first-class importance ; and even on 
the main passes themselves one may happen to 
cross at a time when the road-menders have just 
been laying new metal on the upper stages. None 
the less the general principle holds good, and is 
tantamount to this — that one need never be afraid 
of crossing a mountain highway under the fond 



/ 

42 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

belief that safety lies in low levels, and that the 
road may deteriorate towards the summit ; the 
probabilities, and in most cases the certainties, 
are all the other way. 

A fair proportion of people who have taken a 
car to the neighbourhood of the Pjnrenees will 
probably have ignored the two cols which are 
named above, because it is a common practice 
merely to run up into the mountains and back 
again from the big town as a base, such as Pau, 
Lourdes, or Bagneres-de-Bigorre. A mere glance 
at the map, however, will show that the roads in 
question provide a direct connection across the 
mountains with the Col du Tourmalet route, 
without touching the plains. This chain of three 
passes, in fact, offers one of the most interesting 
and picturesque journeys in the Pyrenees ; and, 
though the two with which I am about to deal 
are, Uke the Col du Tourmalet itself, departmental, 
not national, roads, they are for the most part 
well engineered, particularly that over the Col 
d'Aspin. They present, it is true, a few stiff 
gradients, though much less emphatic than those 
of the Tourmalet Pass ; but, as a matter of fact, 
they are traversed daily in the season by public- 
service cars. It is possible, indeed, for the tourist 
who does not rejoice in the possession of a motor- 
car of his own to travel by automobile all the 
way from Luchon to Luz, and from there down 
to Argeles and Lourdes. 

I mention these facts because they offer a 
curious corollary to the reluctance which, I find. 



LUCHON TO STE. MARIE-DE-CAMPAN. 43 

not a few automobilists display to taking their 
own cars over mountain routes ; to a certain 
number of drivers and owners a journey over a 
pass still suggests some amount of terror, terror 
which is to the last degree needless and absurd. 
Possibly they are scared by the sight of photo- 
graphs of the lacets which figure occasionally 
in descriptions of mountain passes ; but in this 
connection it may be as well to point out one or 
two salient facts. In the first place, a photo- 
graph of a series of lacets, in nine cases out of ten, 
can only be taken when there is a convenient 
eminence, opposite or above, to which the photo- 
grapher may climb in order to obtain either 
frontal or bird's-eye views. Necessarily, therefore, 
the resultant picture of the road is abnormal ; 
the actual traveller on the road level often only 
sees a straight stretch of road in front of his car, 
and the corner which he is approaching ; and this 
straight stretch may be of considerable length 
before the turn is reached. 

Still more important, however, is the fact — 
which those unversed in mountain touring are 
liable to ignore — that the zigzag road spells safety, 
just as do the banked corners at Brooklands 
or on a cycle race-track. It is the steep road 
which is not scientifically cut according to a 
definite mathematical scale that is dangerous, 
just as Brooklands would be dangerous if the 
whole track were flat. The time to " tremble 
with apprehension " is when you are driving, 
say, from Lynton to Lynmouth, or down a few 



44, THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

of the choice pitches, with their gradients of 
1 in 4, which abound in the neighbourhood of 
Exmoor ; but lacets are a measure of safety, 
and are to be welcomed accordingly. 

To reach the Col de Peyresourde— or Port 
de Peyresourde, as it is often called — one must 
leave Luchon by the Allee des Soupirs. Very 
soon the road begins to rise steadily, and there 
are two " hairpin " corners to be rounded. The 
road runs through a glade of elms, which afford 
a welcome relief from the sun's rays, and on the 
left is a finely wooded slope with a series of 
small cascades. Soon several more corners are 
encountered, of a radius which may be taken 
without reversing, and the road then ascends 
rather more steeply, with some amount of 10 
per cent. The surface generally is good, but as 
the road runs through a defile it is somewhat 
straight. 

Higher up, however, there is more room for 
extension, and the gradient moderates accord- 
ingly. Several villages are passed in turn, and 
one may meet an immense herd of cattle 
peacefully browsing on the rich pastures to 
the left. By and by we are confronted with a 
rampart on which the road is outlined in four 
zigzags, and the scene is strongly suggestive 
of La Grande Croix on the Mont Cenis Pass. 
In the one case as in the other, however, though 
the corners are somewhat steep, they are not 
of too short a radius to swing round without 
difficulty, and very soon we are at the summit 




AT THE SUMMIT OF THE COL D'ASPIN. 
(The tri-oar seen in the illustration has ascended from Ste. Marie-de-Campan.) 



THE COL DE PEYRESOURDE. 45 

(5,069 feet). The journey up to this point has 
represented a rise of 3,002 feet in 14J kilometres, 
or an average of about 350 feet per mile. 

The summit is one of the type which provides, 
immediately after it is reached, a total change 
of view, and the one which greets us as we breast 
the last yard of the ascent is ample reward for 
the climb. I regret that I am unable to convey 
any idea of the forward outlook for the reason 
that, at the time of my crossing, the sun was 
in the wrong direction. To the enthusiastic 
photographer the chief trial of automobile tour- 
ing is the fact that, times without number, 
he is precluded from taking a glorious view 
simply because the sun is shining directly into 
the lens of his camera. As with most of the 
Pyrenean road summits, there is nothing in 
the nature of a hospice on the col, and the scene 
is singularly wild. In all probability one will 
see, as I did, several falcons in flight. 

Of the descent towards Arreau, a matter 
of 18 kilometres, it may be said that the road 
is of first-class quality throughout, as was the 
case with the ascent. The fall is fairly steep, 
however, and amounts in places to as much as 
14 per cent. The journey is a delightful one, 
for, even where a turn of the road may shut out 
views of lofty peaks or well-wooded slopes, there 
are fine rolling prairies to please the eye. Villages 
are dotted up and down the hillsides, and yet 
others are visible deep below in the valley of 
the Neste. There is a particularly fine backward 



46 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

view, moreover, when seven kilometres down, 
or 11 kilometres above Arreau. At Borderes- 
Louron, where the ruins of a mediaeval chateau 
may be seen, the road becomes less steep for a 
time, but the gradient increases again on nearing 
Arreau. When one glides into this little town 
of about 1,000 inhabitants, a descent has been 
effected of 2,779 feet in 18 kilometres. 

Arreau is situated amid pleasing surroundings 
at an altitude of 2,290 feet, and is a favourite 
centre for excursions. It not only commands the 
Col de Peyresourde route on the one side, and 
the Col d'Aspin on the other, and is also inter- 
sected by the road to La Bar the along the Valine 
de la Neste, but it affords the further opportunity 
of a run up to Aragnouet along the valley of 
the Neste d'Aure, a pleasant trip of 26 kilometres. 
Undoubtedly, however, the best excursion that 
can be taken from Arreau is that over the Col 
d'Aspin itself, which we are already considering as 
part and parcel of the through route from Luchon. 

The Col d'Aspin is indeed a surprise packet, 
and few people would be prepared for its charm 
and picturesqueness. From the summit (4,912 
feet) it offers one of the finest view-points to 
be found in the whole of the P3^enees, and, 
indeed, from any summit elsewhere of equal 
height. Personally, I would not have missed it 
on any account, and the sensations of pleasure 
which I derived from the journey were the greater 
from the fact that I had no inkling of what was 
in store. 



1 



THE COL D'ASPm. 47 

The ascent from Arreau is one of 2,622 feet 
in 12 kilometres, and the maximum gradient 
to be encountered is 10 per cent. On emerging 
from the town, one must keep to the left and 
follow a winding and at first rather narrow road, 
but of good quaUty. It soon begins to ascend 
steeply, with two Hberal bends, and quickly over- 
looks the valley from a considerable height. 
The gradient moderates slightly for a time, and 
then becomes steeper again as another corner 
is approached. When this is reached a magni- 
ficent view of peaks is unfolded, very extensive 
even as seen from the road. The surface now 
becomes somewhat gritty, though the small stones 
are not of a tj-pe to damage one's tyres, and 
in wet weather the roughness would be agree- 
able rather than otherwise, as tending to eliminate 
any possibihty of side-shp. 

The road is skilfully carried up the mountain 
side in windings, and the surface improves the 
higher one cHmbs. Owing to the sinuous nature 
of the route, however, a lookout must be kept 
for descending vehicles, and also for those which 
are ascending if they are cars slower than one's 
own, or maybe horse-drawn carriages. Horses, of 
course, toil up so slowly that it is quite possible 
to come suddenly upon a carriage just round a 
corner, hard over on the wrong side of the road. 

Striking as the views have been over the 
vallevs of the Aure and the Xeste during the 
ascent, they are excelled by the magnificent 
panorama which is disclosed from the summit 



48 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

itself. Its amplitude is indeed inspiring, whether 
one looks backwards towards the Maladetta and 
other peaks towering behind Luchon, or westwards 
towards the ranges of the Central Pyrenees, with 
a wonderful variety of altitudes, in the mountains 
of the middle distance, which invests the landscape 
with peculiar charm. 

I have already stated that the road is 
traversed by public-service vehicles — not, I may 
mention, of the char-a-banc type, but ordinary 
touring cars — and may add that, as the picture 
opposite page 44 will show, it is not in any way 
too formidable even for vehicles of a humbler 
kind. The little tri-car seen in the illustration 
had successfully ascended, on the occasion of 
our visit, the steep road from Ste. Marie, and 
its owner showed no little pride in its performance. 

In less than two kilometres after one has 
begun the descent, however, the noble panorama 
is concealed from view for the time being, as 
the road, which is of splendid quality, runs 
through a wood of firs, with three beautifully 
curved lacets. Occasional clearances, however, 
afford entrancing glimpses on the left. Five 
kilometres from the summit the hamlet of Espiadet 
is reached, and is noteworthy from the fact that 
there is here a famous quarry of green marble, 
flecked with red and white. This stone has fur- 
nished twenty-two of the columns of the Royal 
Palace at Berlin, and alike the columns of the 
Trianon at Versailles, and also some of those at 
the Paris Opera House. 



THE COL D'ASPIN. 51 

The road continues to descend to PayoUe, 
a small village which is nevertheless both a 
summer and a winter station, and after a brief 
rise winds down to another hamlet — namely. La 
Seoube. The country is pleasantly pastoral, and 
watered by the River Adour. Three and a half 
kilometres farther one reaches the village of Ste. 
Marie-de-Campan, at an altitude of 3,093 feet, 
and the descent from the summit has been one of 
1,819 feet in 13 kilometres. As we have already 
seen in a previous chapter, Ste. Marie marks the 
beginning of the Col du Tourmalet route. 

The road has been excellent throughout the 
whole of the descent, but on its lower stages 
it is necessary to look out for timber-waggons. 
Nor are those which are on the move the only 
ones to be avoided; and, as an illustration, I 
may mention an incident which befel our little 
party. We had descended to within a kilometre 
or so of Ste. Marie, and were just rounding a 
slight bend in the road, when we came suddenly 
upon the most extraordinary obstruction I have 
ever seen. It was a timber-waggon, tilted up 
and resting on its back load in the middle of 
the road. The horse that had been within the 
shafts was browsing in an adjoining field, and 
there was no sign whatever of any driver; he 
had calmly turned the animal to grass and left 
the cart until he was ready to unload, or resume 
the journey, whichever his purpose may have 
been. For sheer effrontery I have never seen 
anything to equal the way in which this vehicle 

E2 



52 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

monopolised the roadway, at a point where 
its presence was dangerous in the extreme to 
anyone approaching Ste. Marie. 

If bad weather should happen to render it 
inadvisable to embark on the ascent of the Col 
du Tourmalet on arrival at Ste. Marie, it is only 
necessary to descend farther down the valley 
for 13 kilometres to reach Bagneres-de-Bigorre. 



ITINERARY. 
The Cols de Peyresourde and d*Aspin. 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Luchon - 


2,066 


— 


— 


Pont de Mosqueres - 


— 


n 


n 


Fork - 


— 


3 


a 


St.-Aventin - 


— 


i 


5 


Garin . - - 


— 


3i 


8i 


Col de Peyresourde - 


5,069 


6 


14| 


Auberge de Londer- 








vieille 


— 


5 


m 


Auberge d'Estar- 








vielle 


— 


H 


21 


Aneran-Camors 


— 


H 


22^ 


Fork 


— 


H 


24 


Borderes-Luron 


2,779 


^ 


274 


Arreau - 


2,290 


5 


324 


Col d^Aspin - 


4,912 


12 


444 


Espiadet 


— 


5 


494 


Payolle - 


3,609 


n 


51 


La Seoube 


— 


3 


54 


Ste. Marie-de-Oam- 








pan - - - 


3,093 


34 


574 


Bagneres-de-Bigorre 


1,824 


13 


704 




A VIEW ON THE GAVARNIE ROAD. 
(The mountain in the background is the Pic Campbieii). 



CHAPTER V. 

FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE — THE MOST 
POPULAR RUN IN THE PYRENEES — A 
VISIT TO THE FAMOUS CIRQUE. 



M 



'AN and beast alike have cause to bless the 
advent of the motor-car when an excur- 
sion like that to Gavarnie has to be 
considered. It is the most popular run in the 
Pyrenees, albeit one of the up-and-down order, 
for there is no through route at this point to 
Spain ; but, whereas the use of a horsed carriage 
was form^erly inevitable, the tourist may now 
travel in a public-service car and save himself no 
small degree of tedium. Of course there are still 
ordinary carriages on the road, but one pities 
the horses and passengers alike. Some day — and 
it is not so very distant — all traffic on mountain 
routes, for tourists at all events, will be con- 
fined to motor vehicles pure and simple, and 
people will wonder how mankind could ever be 
so cruel as to force horses to toil up mile after 
mile of uninterrupted ascent, or creep down 
almost as laboriously, with the weight of a 
heavy load behind threatening at every moment 
to force them out of their cautious stride. 

The conventional way of reaching Gavarnie 
until recently was to take the electric tramway 



54 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

from Lourdes to Luz, and there charter a horsed 
carriage or brake. It is now possible, however, 
not only to travel by public-service car — not of 
the char-a-banc type, but an ordinary touring 
phaeton — all the way from Lourdes, but even 
to reach Luz by way of the Col de Peyresourde, 
the Col d'Aspin, and the Col du Tour male t, three 
routes which I have already described. The 
private car owner we will assume to have come 
over the Col du Tourmalet to Luz, where he must 
turn to the left and run between two straight 
lines of poplars. In a short time he will come 
to a fork. It is immaterial, however, which road 
be chosen ; the one to the left goes straight for- 
ward, while the one to the right crosses the River 
Gave, and ascends to the pleasant thermal station 
of St. Sauveur-les-Bains, and rejoins the main 
road on the far side of the village. If the main 
road be adhered to on the outward journey, 
the diversion to St. Sauveur should be taken on 
the descent for the sake of variety. 

Luz has an altitude of 2,247 feet, while that of 
the village of Gavarnie is 4,429 feet; the journey, 
therefore, represents a rise of 2,182 feet in 19 J 
kilometres. The average, it will be realised, is 
not in any sense overpowering ; but the rise is 
not altogether uniform, and on the upper stages 
there are gradients of from 12 to 15 per cent. 
The road surface itself is excellent, and the 
journey should offer no difficulty to soundly 
built touring cars of average power. 

It is gloriously picturesque, moreover, through- 



FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE. 55 

out. In the first instance it leads through a 
magnificent ravine, the Gorge de Gave, and on 
the right is seen the fine Pont Napoleon, built by 
the third emperor of that name, where the by-road 
joins in from St. Sauveur-les-Bains. The bridge 
crosses the Gave in a beautiful span of 220 feet, 
and stands 213 feet above the stream. A marble 
column which may be observed at one end of the 
bridge was erected in honour of Napoleon III 
and the Empress Eugenie. The hillside on the 
right is a marvel of wooded richness, and, needless 
to say, is a veritable feast to the eye when the 
autumn tints have begun to appear. 

Emerging from the ravine one may note the 
cascade of Lassariou on the right, and, after 
crossing the Pont de Sia, yet another fine cascade 
is seen on the left. Then the road runs through 
open prairies, passing the village of Pragn^res, 
and, steadily rising, eventually reaches G^dre. 
Meanwhile, however, the interest of the route 
has been intensified by a first glimpse of the Cirque 
de Gavarnie. To my mind there is nothing 
more impressive, when travelling by road in 
mountainous regions, than the surprise views one 
obtains of distant glories, especially when they 
are the main objective of one's journey. Some- 
times the glimpse is only momentary, and the 
peak or glacier is shut out from view for several 
miles to f oUow ; at other times, once seen it is 
before one all the way, gradually growing in size 
and splendour until the goal is reached. These 
vistas, too, are especially inspiring when one is 



56 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

travelling in August or September, and snow and 
ice are rare save at the highest altitudes, and 
when — as in the case of the Cirque de Gavarnie, 
on the road we are now considering, or the Cirque 
de Venasque, as seen behind Luchon when ap- 
proaching from St. Beat — they are often the only 
flashes of white on the whole horizon. 

The village of Gedre, which stands at the 
junction of the River Gave de Heas with the Gave 
de Pau, has an altitude of 3,264 feet, and is one 
of the most charmingly situated in the Pyrenees. 
In itself, moreover, it is more picturesque than 
the average Pyrenean agglomeration of buildings. 
Its immediate environment is rich, in variety, 
and one may gaze down the valley towards Luz, 
or upwards towards Gavarnie, or eastwards to- 
wards the Pic de Campbieil with equal pleasure. 
Gedre is a favourite summer station, and a centre 
for excursions, chief among which is that to the 
Cirque de Troumouse, which closely rivals the 
Cirque de Gavarnie itself in attractiveness. In- 
cidentally it may be mentioned that a new road 
is being built up to Heas, a village which is 
more than half-way to the Cirque de Troumouse, 
and will greatly facilitate the journey thither, 
which at present takes something like four hours 
by mule-path. 

Above Gedre the road increases somewhat in 
gradient, and shortly begins to wind in three 
huge zigzags at the foot of the slope of the Coumelie 
mountain. Three kilometres above G^dre one 
passes the magnificent cascade of Arraudet. The 



FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE. 57 

road is cut along the mountain side at a great 
height above the River Gave de Pan. The slopes 
are covered with enormous boulders, many of 
which take curious shapes, and one closely re- 
sembles a bear at rest. Careful driving is necessary 
in August and September, as that is the Lourdes 
pilgrimage season, and many of the visitors to that 
town appear to combine piety with pleasure, and 
swarm up to Gavarnie in great numbers. The 
vehicular traffic is therefore enormous, and in 
curious contrast to that of almost any other 
Pyrenean mountain route. There is also one 
bad caniveau to be encountered when not very 
far from Gavarnie. 

At length one reaches the village itself, and, 
in spite of the fact that it has fewer than 300 
inhabitants, it is a hive of activity in the season. 
Numerous cars are parked in the neighbourhood 
of the hotels, as well as ordinary carriages, and 
there are muleteers and guides in plenty waiting 
to take one to the Cirque, the cascade, or other 
famous points of view in the vicinitj^ Of what one 
may see from the village itself, one may obtain an 
adequate idea from the photograph of the Cirque 
on the adjoining page, and the further illustration 
of Gavarnie which follows. The latter picture, 
I believe, is unique from the fact that the Cirque 
itself is the paramount attraction to photographers, 
and few would take the trouble to photograph 
the village. In my own case, however, I ex- 
perienced the usual luck which befalls the tourist, 
and found the sun immediately over the top of 



58 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

the Cirque, so that I had no option but to turn 
my back thereto, relying upon a professional 
photograph, taken at a more opportune moment, 
of the major attraction. 

Not content, however, with what is to be seen 
from this point, it is absolutely necessary that one 
should abandon the car and become an ordinary 
tourist. The Cirque seems at close quarters 
enough, but, as a matter of fact, it is a good 
twenty minutes' walk or mule ride to a point 
where it can be viewed to advantage ; but, if 
one wishes to view the Cirque in all its glories, 
and penetrate to its very heart, the journey is 
one of two hours there and back by mule. Given 
favourable weather, however, one must needs be 
very pressed for time, and very unappreciative of 
one's opportunities, if one fails to visit the Cirque 
and Grande Cascade in the orthodox manner. 

A more majestic or impressive spectacle than 
that which the Cirque de Gavarnie affords is not 
to be found in the whole of the P5rrenees or even 
the Alps themselves. Not only is the spectator 
surrounded by numerous high peaks, including 
the Astouzou (9,921 feet), the Pic du Marbore 
(10,672 feet), the Epaule de Marbore (10,230 feet), 
the Tour de Marbore (9,901 feet), the Casque de 
Marbore (9,862 feet), and the Doigt de la Fausse- 
Breche (9,672 feet) ; but there is a unique array 
of glaciers arranged in long terraces, above vertical 
walls of rock, with a precision which, if one were 
to believe the legendary lore attached to the 
spot, is due to supernatural rather than natural 




THE VILLAGE OF GAVARNIE. 



FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE. 59 

forces. Formidable, however, as the barrier of 
mountains appears to the eye, it is penetrated by 
three paths leading into Spain, by way of the 
Col d'Astouzou, the Col de la Cascade, and the 
Br^che de Roland. According to fable, the last- 
named opening was cleft by the famous hero 
with a blow of his sword just before his death. 
No fewer than thirteen cascades fall from the 
glaciers which are superimposed on the massive 
rocks, and one of these falls, known as the Cascade 
de Gavarnie, or the Grande Cascade, is particu- 
larly worthy a visit, though that involves another 
fifty minutes' journey. It leads from crag to 
crag until, reaching the edge of the precipice, it 
hurls itself headlong into space from a height of 
no less than 1,384 feet to the base of the Cirque, 
in a single uninterrupted column at the time of 
the melting of the snows ; but during the hot 
season the stream is broken two-thirds of the way 
down, and rebounds anew. Even then, however, 
the first fall is considerably longer than that of 
the Madesimo on the Spliigen Pass, in Switzerland, 
which is the finest in the Alps. It is more by 
figures, perhaps, than a verbal description that 
an adequate impression may be conveyed to the 
reader's mind of the grandiose proportions of the 
Cirque and Grande Cascade ; and I may add 
that the base of the Cirque measures no less than 
four kilometres across, while the amphitheatre 
of peaks is over fourteen kilometres from outpost 
to outpost. Reluctantly one leaves this memorable 
scene, the overpowering influence of which remains 



60 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

in the mind long after one has rejoined one's car, 
and started on the downward journey to Luz. 

These up-and-down journeys in the Pjo-enees, 
in cases where the roads are not carried across the 
ranges into Spain, are by no means unsatisfying, 
for the return journey affords a pleasurable 
opportunity of viewing the scenery from a totally 
opposite point of view from that of the ascent. 
The run down, therefore, from Gavarnie will be 
found in every way enjoyable, save that one must 
needs drive with circumspection because of the 
exceptional amount of traffic. One meets many 
cars ascending, and pities, as I have remarked 
above, the toiling horses in the ordinary carriages. 
I was gratified in my own case to note the agreeable 
impression which our English car made by reason 
of its silence and the care with which it was 
driven ; 99 per cent, of the motor vehicles one 
encounters in the Pyrenees have open exhausts, 
and are often inconsiderately driven. As we 
passed a horse-drawn carriage I heard a lady 
proffer the remark " Voild une voiture qui marche 
hien^ To the motorist, of course, the phrase 
marcher bien implies speed and power, but the 
lady's encomium was due merely to the fact that 
we were going slowly and making no noise. 

Just above the village of Gedre we halted by 
a grassy knoll for our usual al fresco luncheon; 
it saves a good deal of trouble, as well as being 
much more pleasant than visiting an hotel, to 
carry a luncheon-basket on the car. While we 
were enjoying our mid-day meal we observed a 
boy of thirteen standing by and displaying much 



Si^ 



lllUMILil'lllirillWMMIMttt 



LOURDE^ 



BAGNERES 
DE BIGORRt 



CAUTCRCTS ^ * 



JVMARlEi 






»«*f? 



\ahi»M 



%-» &AVARNIE 



.»*** 



'^ Pa \ MVAgwe r*'«-<|f/cR \ 



THB KXIOHBOXTBHOOD OF OAVABNISf 



FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE. 68 

interest in our affairs. Suddenly, to our great 
surprise, he broke out into English. To hear our 
native tongue on a remote mountain slope from 
the lips of a youngster was so remarkable that 
I asked him where he had learned his English, 
and he answered, " At Bordeaux," where it was 
taught in the schools, and explained his presence 
by the fact that he was on a visit to a relative at 
Gedre. The boy's knowledge of English, however, 
was not by any means the most interesting of his 
accomplishments. He had an intimate acquaint- 
ance with English sports, and talked quite 
learnedly about football ; but I regret to say that he 
was also primed to the full with prize-fighting lore, 
and could detail the performances of Jack Johnson, 
Tommy Burns, and many others of that ilk ! 

Gliding gently down to Luz we were able to 
appreciate anew the beauties of the Gorge of the 
Gave, and turned aside in order to pass through 
St. Sauveur-les-Bains, which has a very charming 
situation. Beyond Luz the road continues to 
descend to Soulom. One notices on this journey 
the curious method which prevails of watering 
the roads in this district. There is a channel of 
running water at the edge of the road, and the 
road-menders are provided with what look like 
spades, but are really large scoops, and they dip 
these into the channels and spread the water over 
the road surfaces. An electric railway, it may be 
mentioned, runs down the valley, with occasional 
loops which cross the road, while at one point 
the line enters a long tunnel bored through the 
rocks, the road running outside. Just above 



64 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Soulom we witnessed an extraordinary sight in the 
shape of a mountain on fire, the peak being ob- 
scured by a cloud of white smoke accordingly. 
One wondered if this could by any possibility 
be due to the excessive heat of an abnormal 
summer, but I afterwards learned that the fire 
was intentionally created with a view to clearing 
off bad herbage from the upper pastures. Farther 
on, moreover, we came across several other moun- 
tain fires, which were raging quite fiercely, and 
were still in full blast when we passed that way 
again next morning. 

At Soulom one has the option of turning up 
another valley to Cauterets, or continuing to 
descend to Argel^s and Lourdes. Cauterets, how- 
ever, as one of the chief resorts of the Pyrenees, 
should on no account be ignored ; but I must 
reserve a description of the road thither for another 
chapter. 

ITINERARIES. 
Excursions from Luz. 

I. — Luz to the Cirque de Gavarnie, 

Intermediate Progressive 

Place. AUitvde. Distances. Totals. 

{Feet.) (Kils.) (Kila.) 

Luz - - - 2,247 — — 

Pont Napoleon - — 2 2 

PontdeSia - - — 2^ 4^ 

Pragneres - - — 2| 7 

Gedre - - - 3,264 4J 11^ 

Fork - - - — l| 13 

Cascade d'Arroudet — l| 14^ 

Cabane de Refuge - — | 16 

Gavarnie - - 4,429 4^ 19^ 



FROM LUZ TO GAVARNIE. 65 

11* — Lu2 to Cauterets. 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


{Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Luz _ - - 


2,247 


— 


— 


Pont de la Hiladere 


— 


5 


5 


Pont de Villelongue 


— 


6 


11 


Soulom - - - 


— 


1 


12 


Cauterets 


3,058 


9 


21 



CHAPTER VL 

FROM LOURDES TO CAUTERETS — THE 
ATTRACTIONS OF ARGELfiS — THE COL 
DE SOULOR AND THE COL D*AUBISQUE. 

CAUTERETS is one of the favourite resorts 
of the Pjn^enees for those who pitch their 
camp for more than a day at any given 
spot ; but it is worth the automobiHst's attention 
if for no other reason than that of the attractive- 
ness of the journey thither. This may consist of 
a run up the valley from Soulom, after descending 
the Gavarnie road ; or it may be that the tourist 
has approached from the north, in which case 
he will be sure to pass through Lourdes, and it is 
from that town that I propose to describe the 
journey accordingly. 

At the same time I can only hope that the 
rover among Pyrenean ranges has not, from stress 
of weather or any other cause, been compelled 
to stay in Lourdes for any length of time, even for 
a single night. There is nothing to be lost, in 
fact, and everything to be gained by giving it as 
wide a berth as possible. The streets of the town 
are very narrow, but are nevertheless intersected 
with tramlines in a fashion more heinous than I 
have ever seen elsewhere. During the pilgrimage 
season — that is, from July to September — loco- 



FROM LOURDES TO CAUTERETS. 67 

motion would be difficult enough by reason of the 
crowds alone, for it is estimated that pilgrims 
flock thither to the extent of 600,000 per annum ; 
but, with the tram congestion superadded, driving 
through the town in quest of an hotel is a thankless 
task. There is another special reason, moreover, 
why the tourist should be warned against harbour- 
ing any intention of staying at Lourdes — namely, 
that he will find it difficult enough to carry his 
desire into effect, as the hotels are all crowded 
to the doors during the months above named. 

Only a few miles away, however, may be 
found a stopping place which is as eminently 
pleasant as Lourdes is the reverse. I refer to 
Argeles, properly known as Argeles-Gazost, to 
distinguish it from Argeles-sur-Mer in the Eastern 
Pyrenees. The 13 kilometres of road which 
separates Lourdes from Argeles is undulating for 
a time, with a somewhat bumpy surface, but 
gradually improves in quality, as well as increasing 
in attractiveness. The first portion of the journey 
is through the valley of Lavedan, the road being 
on the left of the railway and the River Gave de 
Pau alike ; but, at a fork encountered about four 
kilometres out from Lourdes, a turn to the right 
must be taken, and both rail and river are crossed. 
Thenceforward there is a nice and almost level 
run to Argeles, by way of Vidalos (where there is 
an ancient and ruined castle of the fourteenth 
century) and Ost, through a pleasantly fertile 
plain. 

Argeles, very agreeably situated at an altitude 

F2 



68 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

of 1,499 feet, stands at the junction of the road to 
the Col de Soulor, with the descending road from 
Luz, by way of Soulom. The town is in two parts, 
the older portion being on the hillside, while the 
modern buildings, including the baths, are on 
the plain. Its moderate altitude makes it a 
suitable resting place in summer and winter 
alike, and, though it does not itself boast anything 
of the grandiose order in the way of scenery, it 
is in close touch with several mountain routes. 
The air is mild and pure, and the environment 
well wooded and in every way agreeable. For 
anything in the nature of a lengthy stay Argeles 
is no doubt more suitably visited in spring and 
autumn, as its altitude is somewhat low for the 
heat of summer ; but at any time it is worth a 
halt, and the Hotel du Pare is one which I may 
legitimately go out of my way to mention, as I 
found the management courteous and desirous 
to please in quite unusual measure. The town 
is large enough to have its casino, and there is 
a nine-hole golf-course, while cricket and lawn- 
tennis are available in the Pare des Thermes. 

Before embarking on the road across the 
mountains to Laruns, by way of the Col de Soulor 
and the Col d'Aubisque, we must first consider 
the delightful excursion to Cauterets and back, 
a distance of 29 kilometres each way. Keeping 
to the left at the first village, Lau-Balagnas, we 
rise imperceptibly to Adast, and then descend 
slightly to Soulom, on the Gavarnie road, as has 
already been described. Here we keep to the 



FROM LOURDES TO CAUTERETS. 69 

right, and begin the ascent of 10 kilometres 
which leads to Cauterets (3,058 feet). The road 
runs up a narrow valley, watered by the Gave 
de Cauterets — so narrow, in fact, that it is with 
difficulty that room has been also found for an 
electric railway. In romantic picturesqueness the 
route is hardly excelled in the Pyrenees, and 
particularly striking are the outlines of the Pic 
du Soulom near at hand, and the Pic de Viscos 
farther ahead. 

In the first instance the road follows the right 
bank of the river, but in a very short time crosses 
over and continues on the left bank all the way to 
Cauterets. The railway hugs the right bank for 
some distance farther, and then crosses by the 
fine Pont de Meyabat, and from that point on- 
ward the road runs between the rail and the river. 
Continuing to ascend steeply, it reaches at length a 
point at which its construction may well serve 
as a model to all road engineers. In the midst 
of a rocky and wildly picturesque defile, the road 
conquers the gradient in three of the most beautiful 
bends I have ever come across among the scores 
and scores of mountain roads over which I have 
driven. The radial curves are practically circular, 
and they present lines of beauty that are extra- 
ordinary, and indeed unique, where road engineer- 
ing is concerned. It would need a bird's-eye 
view to show the complete outline of thes3 wind- 
ings, but the illustration on the preceding page 
conveys a very good idea of the disposition of two 
out of the three loops, as seen from above when 



70 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

descending towards Soulom, while the further 
illustration herewith shows the magnificent cowp 
d'ceil which confronts one when nearing the first 
loop on the ascent from the opposite direction. 
The mountain which closes in the scene is the 
Pic Peguere, which stands immediately behind 
Cauterets. The place where this beautiful piece 
of road engineering occurs is variously known as 
La Montee du Limagon and Les Colimagons. 

Continuing to ascend the narrow valley be- 
tween wooded slopes, the road passes the little 
inn of Calypso, and in a very short time reaches 
Cauterets itself. Though the long ravine has by 
now widened out into a miniature plain, the 
town of Cauterets seems barely able to dispose 
itself between the mountain slopes on either side, 
and it presents a spectacle of a compact mass of 
buildings with no apparent room for expansion. 
Though the town itself has fewer than 1,500 
inhabitants, it contains a considerable number 
of hotels and villas, and is said to receive annu- 
ally some 50,000 visitors. The resources of the 
place are almost unrivalled in the Pjrrenees. 
There are no fewer than nine thermal establish- 
ments, with twenty-four springs, yielding, accord- 
ing to Baedeker, about 352,000 gallons per 
day. Primarily the place is a summer resort, 
the season being from June to September, but 
latterly it has also become a centre for winter 
sports, and two ski-ing clubs have been estab- 
lished, while skating, tobogganing, bob-sleighing, 
etc., are also available. The summer diversions 




Photo, hy^ 



LA MONThE DE LIMACON, WITH THE PIC 
PEGUERE BEYOND, 



[Jordy 



THE COL DE SOULOR. 71 

are manifold ; in addition to two casinos and 
an outdoor theatre there are pigeon-shooting, 
pelote-basque, goK, and lawn tennis to be en- 
joyed, with dog-shows and championship races 
for guides, to say nothing of mountain-climb- 
ing. Excellent trout-fishing is also available, 
together with chamois and \vild-boar hunting, 
as well as occasional opportunities for shooting 
royal eagles, vultures, falcons, grouse, partridges, 
and quails. With all these delights at command, 
who would not visit Cauterets ? 

Whether one lingers long, however, at this 
attractive spot, or merely takes it in one's stride, 
the time must come to retrace one's wheel- 
tracks, as the road has not been carried over 
the mountains into Spain. If the descent is 
not steep enough to demand superlative caution, 
it may nevertheless be taken easily for the sake of 
enjoying the wild picturesqueness of the ravine. 
One notes, of course, many things on the descent 
which had escaped the eye on the upward chmb, 
and, on nearing Nestalas, a prospect is unfolded the 
attractiveness of which was perhaps unsuspected 
on the ascent. The valley road must be followed 
as far as Argeles, and from there one may resume 
one's lateral progress across the Hautes Pyrenees. 

To cross from Argeles to Laruns by the two 
cols above named, a journey of 44 kilometres, 
is undoubtedly a most interesting experience. 
The estimable M. Taride marks it on his map 
as a route dangereuse, but this is only one of his 
customar}^ pleasantries. As a matter of fact. 



72 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

like the other thermal routes in the Pyrenees, 
the route is traversed by public-service cars. 
At the same time there is very little general 
traffic on this road, the journey over which 
confers a sense of extraordinary aloofness from 
the world. 

The road rises quickly out of Argeles, while 
the surface is good and shows obvious signs 
of recent improvement. There are fine views 
ahead of the sugar-loaf peaks of which one saw 
so much on the way to Cauterets. Not far from 
the village of Arras the ruins may be noted 
on the right of the fourteenth-century chateau 
of Castelnau d'Azun. The road undulates to 
Aucun (2,628 feet), 10 kilometres from Argeles, 
and then one begins the ascent of the Col de 
Soulor, also known as the Col du Couret (4,757 
feet), which represents a rise of 1,929 feet in 20J 
kilometres. The road is very narrow, and one 
cannot but admire the enterprise which brings 
public-service vehicles along this route. The 
difficulty in passing, if one encountered anything 
coming from the opposite direction, would be 
considerable, but with a little reversing one 
could find a grassy border. Though the fairway 
is so restricted, however, the iqcets are splendidly 
curved, and there is not the slightest difficulty 
in getting round. For some portion of the 
route the road overhangs an unfenced precipice, 
and confers extensive views over the valley of 
Azun. Then it runs through the pastures of 
Artigoux, and, after crossing these, one rises 



THE COL D'AUBISQUE. 73 

steeply to the summit, the view from which is 
of the wildest character. 

On the descent one must go slowly because 
of the cattle likely to be met at any point straying 
over the road, which is unfenced on the right; 
they may even be found lying down in the centre 
of the roadway. In less than three kilometres 
from the summit one passes through a tunnel, 
with a very picturesque outlook. Then follows 
a descent which might prove alarming to a 
nervous passenger, owing to the entire absence 
of anything in the nature of fencing, and the 
precipitous nature of the hillside along which 
the road is cut ; there is nothing difficult, how- 
ever, in the driving itself, so far as concerns 
corners and general control. Signs of forthcoming 
widening were visible in September, 1911, in the 
shape of chipped rocks on the left, so that for 
the future one may expect an improved condition 
of affairs. 

Eventually the road begins to rise again, and 
one passes on the left an isolated refuge at a 
point where a mule-path to the Col de Tortes 
branches off to the left. The road to the summit 
of the Col d'Aubisque (5,610 feet) is rather wider 
than that over the Col de Soulor, but the surface 
is rough in places. One may come across a 
drove of horses browsing on the pastures, and 
farther on may find sheep barring one's progress. 
Falcons and even an occasional eagle may be 
seen soaring directly overhead. As one nears 
the summit it is profitable to turn round in one's 



74 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

seat, for the retrospective views are magnificently 
expansive, with a remarkable variety of outline 
in the peaks. 

The actual summit, as is usual on most 
Pyrenean cols, has no hospice, and does not 
itself present anything in the nature of a picture ; 
but the views on either side, when a few yards 
below the top, are in every way inspiring. One 
has hardly begun the descent, indeed, before 
the far-famed Pic du Midi d'Ossau comes into 
view on the left, and straight ahead there is an 
absolutely savage prospect of a huge range of 
bare rocks of all imaginable shapes. The descent 
is narrow and winding, but not by any means so 
steep as that from the Col du Tourmalet ; in 
fact, we ran down it at from fifteen to twenty 
miles an hour. Large flocks of sheep, both 
white and black, browse on the pastures to the 
left, and some particularly beautiful cattle are 
encountered. An impressive descent leads down 
to a wood in which more cattle are found. There 
is one wide " hairpin " bend through the trees, 
and then one descends to a bridge and swings 
round into the open again. 

An easy run down follows, the road having 
recently been broadened as well as fenced. 
After a fall of 3,158 feet in llf kilometres, one 
reaches Eaux-Bonnes (2,461 feet), a pleasant 
little summer thermal station which now, how- 
ever, offers the attraction of winter sports as well ; 
it is here, in fact, that the Ski Club of Pau holds 
its winter meetings. The road winds down to 



THE COL D'AUBISQUE. 75 

Laruns, which need not necessarily be entered 
if one proposes to continue one's journey by 
way of the Col du Pourtalet, as this branches 
off on the left a short way above the town. 



iUitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 


(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


1,266 


— 


— 


— 


8 


8 


— 


3 


11 


1,499 


3 


14 


— 


2 


16 


— 


2 


18 


— 


2 


20 


— 


1 


21 


3,058 


9 


30 



ITINERARIES. 
From Lourdes to Argelj^s and Cauterets. 

Intermediate Progressive 
Place. 

Lourdes - 
Agos-Vidalos - 
Ost 

Argeles - 
Lau-Balagnas 
Adast 
Nestalas 
Soulom - 
Cauterets 

The Cols de Soulor and d*Aubisque. 

Intermediate Progressive 

Distances. Totals. 

(Kils.) (Kils.) 

4 4 

6 10 

1 11 

1 12 

8| 20i- 

2| 23 

9i 32i 

3| 36 

2 38 
31 411 

I 421 

II 44" 
6 50 



Place. 


Altitude. 


Argeles - - - 
Arras 


(Feet.) 
1,499 


Aucun - - - 
Marsous 


2,282 


Arrens - - - 


— 


Col de Soulor - 
Tunnel - 


4,767 


Col d'Aubisque 
Gourette 


5,610 


Plan de Ley - 
Cascade de Serpent 
Cascade dTscoo 


— 


Eaux Bonnes - 


2,461 


Laruns - - - 


1,640 



CHAPTER VIL 

THROUGH THE HEART OF THE RANGES- 
TWO MAIN ROUTES INTO SPAIN— THE 
COL DU POURTALET AND THE COL DU 
SOMPORT. 

ALL the cols which I have described in 
previous chapters have been on lateral 
routes, although incidentally several up- 
and-down excursions to terminal points — such 
as the Hospice de France, the village of Gavarnie, 
and Cauterets — have also been described. We 
have now to consider, however, the two 
principal passes which cross the Pyrenean ranges 
into Spain — namely, the Col du Pourtalet and 
the Col du Somport. 

Let it be understood at once that each in its 
way provides a magnificent journey, the under- 
taking of which no automobilist could for a 
moment regret ; yet these routes are almost 
unknown to English motorists, for they, as I 
explained in the introductory chapter, almost 
invariably choose the wrong time for visiting 
the Pjrrenees, and are quite unable to attain 
high ground owing to the presence of snow. This 
is the more remarkable from the fact that not 
only are the Pyrenean passes much lower, on 
the average, than those of the Alps, but they 



THE HEART OF THE RANGES. 77 

are less encumbered with snow ; but, so long 
as the strictly British idea is maintained that 
winter and spring are the times for journeying 
to the Pyrenees, so long will it be impossible 
for their resources to be explored by British 
cars. Apparently even continental motorists, 
however, do not cross the Pyrenees by these two 
passes to any great degree, judged by one's 
reception at the custom-houses. I have been 
very much surprised, moreover, to read, in one 
of the very, very few interesting books that 
have been written about the Pyrenees, an extra- 
ordinary statement to the effect that, save for 
the coast routes on the east and west, the Col de 
Roncevaux is the only practical road between 
France and Spain. When statements Hke this 
find their way into print, it is only too clear 
that the passes of the Pyrenees are not known 
to anything like the extent which they so richly 
deserve. Even Murray's "Spain" describes the 
two cols in question as bridle-paths ! 

Reference to a map will show that the Col 
du Pourtalet and the Col du Somport are roughly 
parallel to each other ; they cross the P3n?enees 
practically in the centre of the western district, 
and are only a few kilometres apart. The Col 
du Pourtalet route is entered upon at Laruns 
by the through traveller who has crossed the 
Col de Soulor and the Col d'Aubisque from 
Argeles, but it may also be approached in a direct 
line from Pau. At its most southerly point it 
swings to the right and joins the Col du Somport 



78 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

route at Jaca ; and it is at this town that the 
option is afforded of penetrating still farther 
into Spain, or returning to France over the col 
and descending to Oloron - Ste. - Marie. From 
Laruns to Jaca is a journey of 93 kilometres, 
while the return trip from Jaca to Oloron is 91 
kilometres. There is a side excursion, however, 
on the outward route which should on no account 
be missed — namely, that to the Bains de Panticosa 
and back, and this adds another 28 kilometres 
to the itinerary. 

While it is true that the entire distance could 
be traversed in a day, I do not suggest that such 
a course should be adopted, nor even that the 
journey should be begun at Laruns ; I am merely 
describing the Pyrenean mountain routes seriatim, 
and it is open to the tourist to schedule his 
journey as he pleases. As a matter of fact, when 
I passed this way myself the start was made at 
mid-day from Argeles, and the night was spent 
at the Bains de Panticosa ; but, as an illustration 
of the fact that mountain travelling does not 
involve a limited rate of locomotion, I may 
mention that on the morrow we journeyed from 
the Bains de Panticosa to Jaca, from there over 
the Col du Somport to Oloron-Ste. -Marie, and 
on to Mauleon, St. Jean-Pied-de-Port, and St. 
Etienne de Baigorry — a total distance of 226 
kilometres. 

From Laruns to the Col du Pourtalet the road 
rises to 5,768 feet in 29 kilometres, and the task is 
not regarded as too formidable for public-service 



THE HEART OF THE RANGES. 79 

cars, which run during the season (July 15th to 
September 15th) from Eaux-Bonnes and Laruns 
to the Bains de Panticosa beyond the summit. 
The road leads in the first instance to Eaux- 
Chaudes through a picturesque defile, and is of 
first-class quality. Eaux-Chaudes is one of the 
many summer thermal stations of the P3n?enees, 
and is strikingly situated on the right bank of 
the Gave d'Ossau, in the centre of a wild and 
rocky gorge. The thermal establishment is a 
handsome building, and there is, of course, a 
casino ; but as a resort Eaux-Chaudes is designed 
for those who love quiet rather than innumer- 
able distractions, and its shady promenades are 
a characteristic feature of the place. 

After the town has been left behind, the 
ravine still continues for some distance, with a 
gradual ascent ; eventually, however, the gradient 
becomes rather more pronounced. Nevertheless, 
so excellent is the surface and so beautifully wide 
are the lacets, where they occur, that one may 
ascend at a good pace. The journey through 
the well- wooded defile is magnificently picturesque, 
particularly at a point where one obtains the first 
view of the Pic du Midi d'Ossau, towering ahead 
at an awe-inspiring height. Probably one will 
meet a great herd of beautiful fawn-coloured cattle. 
Then, at 14 kilometres from Laruns, the scene 
closes in somewhat, and the French custom- 
house is encountered by the roadside at the little 
hamlet of Gabas (3,379 feet). There is only one 
official in charge — or, at any rate, such was the 



80 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

case when we called, and he proved very civil and 
was glad to have a chat. The Taride map, by 
the way, does not show that there is a custom- 
house at Gabas, nor does it embody any indication 
of the presence of the Spanish custom-house on 
the other side. 

Then comes the stage of 15 kilometres to the 
summit, with a rise of 2,389 feet. As one resumes 
the journey one notes immediately ahead a 
huge buttress, with the road above, as may be 
clearly seen from my first illustration ; but, 
needless to say, the road winds round to the left, 
and then doubles back to the right. The sur- 
face continues excellent, and equally good is the 
grading. A road-menders' hut is passed, and 
in September improvements were in progress at 
this point which made it clear that the authorities 
were desirous that the Col du Pourtalet route 
should maintain its character as a great inter- 
national highway between France and Spain. 

We now find ourselves in the narrow valley of 
the Gave de Brousset, and the road is cut along 
the clifi side. There are one or two intermediate 
zigzags, but one can trace the sinuous line of the 
pass through nearly the whole period of one's 
ascent. The gradient is never steep enough to 
necessitate the use of the first speed, and for a 
considerable portion of the way our 18-h.p. Austin 
took the rise on the third. Away on the right the 
Pic du Midi d'Ossau stands out in superb promin- 
ence, and offers perhaps the finest road view of an 
individual peak that can be found in the whole 



THE COL DU POURTALET. 81 

of the Pyrenees. Eventually one seems to rise 
above it, but it is always worth, while to turn 
round in one's seat and obtam a retrospective 
view. When at length the summit is attained, 
the dominant feeling in one's mind is that one 
would not have missed the journey for worlds, 
and the prospects, both in the direction by which 
one has ascended and when looking across to the 
ranges ahead, are ample and striking alike. The 
summit, I may mention, marks the actual frontier 
between France and Spain, and is dominated by 
the Pic d'Aneou to the south-west and the Pic 
d'Estremere to the north-east. 

I have said that the road on the French side 
is good, but an agreeable surprise awaits one on 
entering upon the descent, for on the Spanish 
side the surface is even better ; whereas a good 
deal, moreover, of the ascent is unfenced, the 
Spanish portion of the road is provided with a very 
substantial stone parapet. The descent is beauti- 
fully graded, with easy curves. A little way down 
a carabiniers' station is passed, and many hundreds 
of sheep are seen browsing on the ample pastures 
of the Val Roumigas. Excellent as is the surface 
generally, however, a bad caniveau must be watched 
for. Last summer one had to halt also at a 
mountain quarantine station, and answer enquiries 
as to one's previous route, owing to the prevalence 
of cholera at Perpignan and in Italy. 

After a beautiful winding descent of 10 kilo- 
metres, with constant views of rugged peaks ahead, 
the little town of Salient is reached, where one 

G 



82 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

must needs pass the Spanish customs. The 
custom-house is situated on the left of the road, 
just as one enters the main street. Thence- 
forward the road continues excellent, and follows 
the course of the River Gallego, amidst scenery 
of almost savage grandeur. Beyond Lanuza the 
valley contracts, and for a short distance the 
descent is somewhat accentuated. Another cani- 
veau may be expected, and at one point a sudden 
series of three unlooked-for " hairpin " bends is 
encountered. 

Eight kilometres from Salient, and eighteen 
from the summit, one has the option of visiting 
the Bains de Panticosa or of continuing the 
descent to Jaca. It is well worth while, however, 
to take the former alternative. Turning to the 
left, therefore, at the fork just above Sandinies, 
one crosses the fine Pont d'Escarilla, and ascends 
the Gorge du Caldares. About three kilometres 
from the junction there is a bad watersplash which 
requires to be taken with great care ; the quality 
of the road generally, however, is satisfactory. 
That cars are not frequently encountered on this 
road soon becomes evident from the fright that 
muleteers display at one's approach. The village 
of Panticosa itself lies below the road on the 
right, but the Baths are seven kilometres farther on, 
and the journey thither is a fine sporting experi- 
ence. The road ascends steeply in a series of 
eight zigzags, which are fairly acute ; but a car 
with a good lock can negotiate each and all of 
them without reversing. At the same time. 




L 



THE COL DU POURTALET. 83 

some pretty driving is required if the car is power- 
ful enough to breast the rise at a good pace ; 
and very emphatic was the surprise that we noticed 
on the face of the driver of another car which we 
passed hands over fist. Subsequently we ascer- 
tained that it belonged to the proprietor of the 
Grand Hotel, and he complimented us very 
warmly on the capabilities of our British car. 
The road rises high above a deep ravine on the 
right, but has a substantial parapet. Beyond the 
seventh corner there is a caniveau, with yet another 
after the eighth ; but no further difficulty is 
encountered for the remainder of the run. 

The Baths of Panticosa are situated on a 
plateau amid an environment of wild and rugged 
rocks. In addition to the Baths there are several 
hotels, a casino, and a number of villas ; and, as 
the plateau stands at an altitude of 5,377 feet, 
this picturesquely situated health resort is the 
highest in the Pyrenees. The air is refreshingly 
cool even in the height of summer ; small wonder 
is it, therefore, that the Bains de Panticosa enjoy 
a great reputation among the Spanish aristocracy, 
who must be mightily pleased to escape from the 
torrid plains below during the season. This 
lasts from June to September, but the busiest 
time is from the middle of July to the middle of 
August. Though so near to the frontier of France, 
the place shows no traces whatever of French 
influence ; and, failing a knowledge of Spanish, 
one may even have difficulty in making one's 
wants understood by the servants at the hotel. 

G 2 



84 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES 

The proprietor of the Grand Hotel, however, 
speaks French, and, in the way of soHcitous 
attention to one's welfare, leaves nothing to be 
desired. Even if the tourist has started his 
journey over the Col du Pourtalet from Laruns, 
and not from Argeles, and therefore is not disposed 
to finish early and stay the night at the Bains de 
Panticosa, the detour from the main road is 
decidedly worth taking for its own sake. 

A very interesting travelling experience is 
the journey of 60 kilometres from the Bains de 
Panticosa to Jaca, and a very easy one withal, 
being either over rapidly descending ground or 
across the level of a plain. As you wind down 
the road from the Baths to the junction you may 
pass groups of peasant women in bright costumes, 
carrying articles of food and drink, or you may 
meet a waggon drawn by a team of no fewer than 
seven mules. A variation to be noticed in the 
vegetation is the presence of cork trees in a wood 
to the right. Skilful piloting of the car round the 
finely curved lacets soon makes light of the 14 
kilometres to the main road, and then one may 
look forward to an even speedier journey to Jaca, 
involving a total fall of 2,855 feet in 46 
kilometres. 

The surface is splendid, and, though the road 
winds occasionally round jutting rocks, there is 
nothing in the least degree difficult, either as to 
gradient or corners. That motor-cars are not 
common objects in these parts, however, is evi- 
dent from the amount of attention which one's 



OLOftON 

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faA/fRANCE 



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£AUX', 
CHAUDiSi 



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(SPAHISH CUSTOm) \ 

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FOUR PASSES BETWEEN ARGBLis AND OLORON-STB.-MAKIE. 



THE COL DU POURTALET. 87 

car attracts from drivers and occupants of horse- 
drawn vehicles. Just beyond the village of 
Hoz, which lies off the main road to the left, the 
little fortress of Santa Elena may be seen, finely 
posted on a well-wooded hillside. Down the 
valley of Tena one speeds, and, in 14 kilometres 
from the junction, Biescas is reached, a charac- 
teristic Spanish town, lying well away on the 
left of the road. Up to this point the scenery 
has maintained its rugged grandeur, but it 
now becomes tamer as one descends to the 
plains. 

A series of watersplashes beyond Biescas must 
be approached with meticulous care. The road 
traverses an arid plain covered with an immense 
array of loose stones, which are a sort of estuary 
from an adjoining mountain torrent, though in 
the heat of summer the scene is dry enough in all 
conscience. For some distance the road surface 
deteriorates, and has numerous little undulations, 
as well as several not easily observed caniveaux, 
some of which are deep enough to jolt the car 
badly. Careful driving, therefore, is essential for 
a time. In a few more kilometres the town of 
Senegue is passed, lying away on the left, and, a 
little farther beyond, care must be taken to turn 
to the right at a fork. We wind round a " hair- 
pin " corner and find ourselves on a good ascend- 
ing road, which soon, however, descends anew in 
wide curves. Then follows a magnificent straight 
run between poplars, and the road is strongly 
suggestive of Napoleonic methods. So good is 



88 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

the surface that the throttle is advanced almost 
unconsciously, and we gather speed until the 
indicator passes the sixty miles an hour mark. 
At the end of this long straight run, however, 
there is a slight turn, and another caniveau is 
encountered just past a railway bridge. Soon 
afterwards the quaint old town of Jaca is entered 
by a winding hill. 

At Jaca one could continue in a westerly 
direction for Pampeluna, or turn due south for 
Saragossa, but those on motor mountaineering 
bent must veer to the right after passing through 
the town, and thus enter upon the magnificent 
road over the Col du Somport. The highway is 
wide, but soon proves to be very dusty, a fact 
which is mainly due to the building of a new 
trans-Pjrrenean railway to Oloron-Ste. -Marie. 
No town is encountered imtil that of Castiello is 
reached, 14 kilometres from Jaca, and there a 
tremendous caniveau must be looked for. After 
a few kilometres the road becomes firmer, and, 
at Villanua, rocks begin to appear at the sides, 
and we are fairly embarked upon the ascent to 
the frontier and the crossing of the great Pyrenean 
range. The surface improves the higher one goes, 
and the little town of Canfranc is soon reached, 
at an altitude of 3,412 feet, and 25 kilometres from 
Jaca. Drawing up in the narrow main street of 
the town at the Spanish custom-house, we are 
detained there for an unusually long time while 
the officials are stamping the triptyque. 

The road follows the left bank of the River 



THE COL DU SOMPORT. 89 

Aragon for several kilometres, and rises almost 
in a straight line. At La Coca one sees the yawn- 
ing mouth of a new railway tunnel, with a 
half-finished embankment and locomotives busily 
drawing trucks. Great difficulties have been 
experienced in the construction of this line, and 
whether it will ever be completed is at least 
problematical. Beyond the village the road 
ascends in windings to the summit (5,381 feet), 
the rise from Canfranc being one of 1,969 feet in 
12 kilometres. The road surface is excellent, and 
the scenery is rugged in the extreme. Domin- 
ating the ravine on the right is the Fort of S. 
Antonio. For the rest of the way to the summit 
the roadside is bordered with magenta-coloured 
rocks, with a curiously rich effect, while they 
offer an interesting contrast to the higher peaks 
of white limestone. The summit is marked by a 
large stone pillar on the right and a tricolour 
signpost on the left, and commands a striking 
panorama of fantastically shaped peaks. 

The descent is glorious, a splendidly surfaced 
road, with neither troublesome corners nor ex- 
cessive gradients, leading through scenery of 
peculiar grandeur, especially at one point where 
an extraordinary wild cirque is seen on the right. 
As one enters the zone of trees the varied tints 
of autumn combine with the purple tinges of the 
mountains to form a veritable feast of colour. 
Soon the road becomes wider and the surface 
beautifully smooth, and the descent is in every 
way fascinating until, near Urdos, a collection of 



90 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

wooden huts is reached, with other evidences of 
railway operations, the road deteriorating accord- 
ingly. The French custom-house is at Urdos, and 
our luggage was there subjected to an unusually 
pertinacious examination, the reason, as I after- 
wards learned, being that only the day before 
there had been a sanguinary encounter between 
three douaniera and seven smugglers, an officer 
being seriously injured, and one of the contra- 
bandists shot dead. 

Over the pass itself the road was built by 
Napoleon the Third, and is of magnificent con- 
struction throughout. Below Urdos, however, 
the gradients are more irregular, with sundry 
steep pitches ; and until the railway is completed 
- — or abandoned — the road surface is bound to 
be cut up, and the remainder of the journey down 
the Vallee d'Aspe is as dusty as could well be 
imagined. 



ITINERARIES. 


The Col du Pourtalet. 




Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. Distances. Totals. 




{Feet.) [Kils.) (Kils.) 


Laruns - 


1,664 — — 


Pont Crabe - 


— 3 3 


Eaux-Chaudes 


— 3 6 


Gabas (French Cus- 




toms) 


3,379 8 14 


Pont de Sagette 


3,934 2J 16J 


Pont de Laroudet - 


- H 24 


Col du Pourtalet 


5,768 5 29 


Cuartel de Socoter - 


4,987 5 34 


Salient - - - 


4,288 5 39 



THE COL DU SOMPORT. 



91 



From Sallent to the Bains de Panticosa and 

JACA. 







Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


{Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Salient - 


4,288 


— 


— 


Lanuza - - - 


— 


3 


3 


Fork 


— 


6 


8 


Panticosa 


— 


7 


15 


Bains de Panticosa - 


5,377 


7 


22 


Back to the main 








road - 


— 


14 


36 


Biescas - 


2,835 


14 


50 


Jaca - - - 


2,687 


32 


82 


From Jaca to Oloron, 








Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Fed.) 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Jaca - - - 


2,687 


— 


— 


Castiello 


— 


14 


14 


Villanua 


— 


7 


21 


Canfranc (Spanish 








Customs) - 


3,412 


4 


25 


La Coca 


— 


6 


31 


Col du 8omport 


5,381 


6 


37 


La Fonderie - 


— 


5 


42 


Lin - - _ 


— 


2 


44 


Urdos (French Cus- 








toms) 


2,493 


3 


47 


Etsaut - - - 


— 


7 


54 


Cette-Eygun - 


— 


3 


57 


Pont de Lescun 


— 


2 


59 


Accous - - - 


1,509 


3 


62 


Bedous - - - 


1,362 


,-^4 


66 


Pont Suzon - 


— 


4 


70 


Sarrance 


— 


2 


72 


Escot - 


— 


3 


75 


Asasp - - - 


— 


7 


82 


Arros 


— 


3 


85 


Gurmen9on - 


— 


I 


86 


Cross Roads - 


— 


3 


89 


Oloron-Ste.-Marie - 


689 


2 


91 



CHAPTER VIIL 

FROM TOULOUSE TO MONTLOUIS — SOME 
FAMOUS GORGES — A ROAD^BUILDING 
ROMANCE— THE COL DE CASTEILLOU. 

TO the British automobihst the Pyrenees 
Orientales are even less known than those 
of the central and western ranges. None 
the less there is much pleasurable touring to be 
enjoyed in the eastern district, and the passes 
are far more numerous than anyone would suppose 
whose knowledge of the Pyrenees is confined to 
hearsay or a winter visit to some well-known 
thermal station. Most of these mountain roads 
merely receive passing mention in the ordinary 
guide-book ; and, unless forearmed with a definite 
line of route, the tourist would inevitably miss 
half of them at least. To pick out cols from a 
general map is a task almost akin to that of 
hunting for needles in a haystack. 

Having the good fortune, however, to be 
piloted by a resident in the district, I was able to 
explore every available mountain route ; and let 
me say at once that there was not a single one 
that did not well repay the journey. There is 
a peculiar sense of satisfaction, moreover, to be 
derived from a tour among Pjrrenean passes, 
inasmuch as they approximate more to the 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 93 

description of virgin ground than any other district 
that is not absolutely remote. Already I have 
cited several illustrations of the fact that book 
references to the mountain roads are frequently 
inaccurate ; but, in further proof of the extremely 
limited amount of information that has been 
tabulated up to the present concerning the 
Pyrenean passes, I may mention that even the 
excellent Touring Club de France itself, which has 
produced so many useful compilations, has no 
scheduled data whatsoever to offer in connection 
with the Pyrenees. The towns and thermal 
stations excepted, the Pyrenees are virtually a 
terra incognita even to French tourists themselves. 

In dealing with the passes of the Hautes 
Pyrenees, I have confined myself exclusively to 
the attractions of the mountain roads or places 
immediately in touch therewith ; but, in the case 
of the cols of the Eastern Pyrenees, one cannot 
plunge in medias res and hark straightway to 
a mountain road, for that would involve the 
ignoring of one of the most famous spots in 
the south-east corner of France — Carcassonne, 
to wit. There is a considerable amount of hilly 
country, moreover, in this same corner which 
offers much picturesqueness of landscape, for 
the Cevennes run right down to the Black 
Mountains and the Corbieres, ere the latter link 
up with the Eastern P3n?enees. 

Anyone proposing to begin the exploration of 
the P5rrenean passes from the east would probably 
approach them by way of Toulouse ; and once at 



94 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Toulouse a visit to the famed city of Carcassonne 
is a natural sequence. We will assume, there- 
fore, that the touring motorist has arrived at 
Toulouse, after a journey through the centre 
of France; and to Carcassonne is then a south- 
easterly run of 90 kilometres in a nearly direct 
line. The road undulates more or less to Revel, 
the only feature worthy of special note being an 
awkward double corner in passing through 
Auriac. 

At Revel, however, we are in touch with bolder 
landscapes. The road begins to rise outside the 
town and is steep for a few hundred yards ; then 
follows a more gradual ascent towards the Black 
Mountains, through well-wooded country. The 
hamlet of Les Cammazes is reached in 11 kilo- 
metres of rising road ; but, after a slight fall, 
the ascent is continued for some distance farther. 
On the left may be seen the last outlying spur of 
the Cevennes Mountains, and in the far distance 
on the right the Eastern Pyrenees come into 
sight for the first time. The ascent is winding, 
but the gradient is not severe, and there are no 
lacets. In the spring this road is bordered with 
tulips, but in the early autumn the air is charged 
with the delicious fragrance of broom. 

Saissac, which stands at an altitude of 1,640 feet, 
is reached after a few undulations, and the road 
winds very steeply through the village, and 
continues to ascend to a point from which an 
expansive stretch of landscape is visible on the 
right, while in the foreground are seen the ruins 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 95 

of the ancient castle which is shown in my first 
illustration. It is a tenth-century building, that 
formerly belonged to the Counts of Carcassonne. 
The road now descends to Montolieu, a small 
town with an old abbey and some picturesque 
houses. The way through the town is both narrow 
and tortuous, with several sharp corners, but it is 
not difi&cult to find, as it is indicated by plaques. 
A fairly long rise follows, with moderate gradients, 
to Moussoulens, where there is a ruined chateau, 
after which one descends to the plains and vine- 
yards. For the most part the road has been 
excellent, but is somewhat rough near its junction 
with the road from Castelnaudary. The remaining 
11 kilometres to Carcassonne afford excellent 
running, and it may be mentioned that, just on 
the outskirts of Carcassonne, one crosses the 
meridian of Paris. 

The old Cite of Carcassonne, which stands 
high above the modern town, is one of the show 
places of Europe, and deservedly so. It has so 
often been described, however, that it would be 
a task of supererogation to include any detailed 
reference here to its manifold glories. Suffice it to 
say that though Julius Ceesar established a camp 
here with Roman towers, it was the Visigoths who, 
nearly 500 years after, built the ramparts which 
survive to this day. Three centuries later the 
Arabs added to the fortifications, and they were 
further amplified by St. Louis in the thirteenth 
century. In more modern times, however, the 
fortress fell into a state of partial ruin, and 



96 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

became a happy hunting-ground for builders, who 
pillaged stone ad lib. 

About seventy-five years ago a scheme of 
restoration was begun, which took half a century 
to complete. The result is highly gratifying in 
the sense that one of the most wonderful structures 
in the world has been saved from destruction, 
and that the work of restoration has been carried 
out with such thoroughness that the building 
stands at the present moment in all its original 
completeness, while the visitor is thus enabled to 
contemplate its marvellous design and admire 
the constructive genius of the men who planned 
it. At the same time, it must be conceded that 
the air of newness which the place wears when 
explored from within is oppressive for the time 
being, and it will need to stand for several hundred 
years before time has mellowed the surface of the 
new stone which has had to be employed. The 
Cite of Carcassonne, I may add, has so often been 
described and illustrated that I contented myseK 
with photographing a corner of the ramparts only. 
On the other hand, the splendid view from the 
old Cite over the broad plain in which the town of 
Carcassonne is centred is not often depicted, 
wherefore I stood in one of the embrasures of the 
outer fortifications and photographed as much of 
the expansive scene below as would come within 
the radius of the lens. Though the large and 
thriving town of Carcassonne is caUed modern 
in contradistinction to the fortifications themselves, 
the fact remains that it has existed for several 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 97 

centuries, and was once sacked by our own Black 
Prince. 

The attractions of the old Cite will enchain the 
tourist for an indefinite period, but in due time 
he must take to the road once more and follow 
the windings of the Aude from Carcassonne to 
Mont-Louis, a distance of 120 kilometres. This 
charming river rises in the Eastern Pyrenees, 
and flows northwards to Carcassonne, beyond 
which it veers to the east and runs right down to 
the Mediterranean below Beziers. Even if Car- 
cassonne itself were other than a remarkable 
objective, it would be worth including in one's 
route for the sake of enjoying the exceptionally 
pleasant journey along the Aude valley. An 
agreeable run of 24 kilometres, mostly by the 
river, brings us to Limoux, where the main road 
is joined which comes down from Toulouse and 
Castelnaudary. 

Along a good, broad, winding road we run 
merrily to Alet, a small but ancient thermal 
resort, and thence between well-wooded slopes 
of reddish soil and rocks to Couiza, where there 
is a fine sixteenth-century castle. Still mean- 
dering alongside the river, we pass through 
Campagne. The mountain views gradually be- 
come more pronounced, and eventually Quillan 
is reached, beautifully situated at an altitude of 
955 feet. On the right is the road to the Col de 
Portel, which I shall deal with later ; but our 
way for the present lies southwards to Axat, 
and passes through the most famous of the 

H 



98 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

many gorges of this corner of France. Beyond 
the village of Belvianes, three kilometres out of 
Quillan, on a beautiful white road, we come 
in sight of limestone pinnacles which stand as 
sentinels to the magnificent Gorge de Pierre- 
Lys. The road is pierced through three rock 
tunnels in succession, and on one of these, which 
is illustrated on the opposite page, may be 
found the following quaintly poetical inscription : 

Le Trou du Cxmt. 

Arrete, voyageur ! Le Maitre des humains 
A fait descendre ici la force et la lumiere. 
II a dit au Pasteur : Accomplis mon dessein, 
Et le Pasteur des monts a brise la barriere. 

Connected with this inscription is the most 
interesting episode, or series of episodes, in the 
whole history of road-building. The Pasteur 
immortalised in the inscription above was one 
Felix Armand, who, over 130 years ago, was Cure 
of the village of St. Martin-Lys. Its poverty- 
stricken condition caused him much anxiety, and 
he realised that prosperity could only be brought 
to its doors by the construction of a road. The 
story of how this came into being is charmingly 
told in a recently published work, entitled 
" Rambles Around French Chateaux," by Frances 
M. Gostling. The Cure himself marked out the 
route, " hanging like a spider from the end of a 
" rope over the awful precipices of the Pierre-Lys. 
" After five years' incessant toil the workmen 
" reached the huge mass of rock which blocks the 
" gorge near Belvianes." Undauntedly, however, 




THE "TROU DU CURE. 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 99 

the Cure incited his parishioners to persevere, 
and in 1781 the tunnel was pierced which still 
bears the name of " Le Trou du Cure." Never- 
theless, the completion of the road in its entirety 
was not effected until many years later, for the 
Revolution supervened ; but after the Reign of 
Terror the Cure set to work anew. His personal 
bravery was such that he himself sprang out 
and extinguished a slow match, just at its last 
inch, when a muleteer came riding round a corner 
just as a mine was about to explode. Buonaparte 
himself heard of the Cure's efforts and exclaimed : 
" A pity the man should be a priest. I would 
" have made him a general of my army." 
Armand was made an Abbe, but declined to 
leave his flock, and he was buried at St. Martin- 
Lys with the Legion of Honour on his breast. 
The importance of his work may be gauged 
from the fact that it laid the foundations of a 
great through route ; and it was only so recently 
as 1887 that the continuation of the road from 
the Gorge de Pierre-Lys to Mont-Louis was 
completed. 

At the village of St. Martin-Lys (eight kilo- 
metres from Quillan) the road comes in touch 
with the railway, and is crossed by a fine viaduct. 
Still passing between great walls of rock, we come 
in three kilometres to a fork. The road to the left 
leads to Perpignan, but we turn to the right, 
and in a short time reach the village of Axat. 
Here we enter the Haute Vallee de I'Aude, the 
journey through which, as far as the Bains d'Usson, 

H 2 



100 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

presents a long series of gorges, forests, and 
cascades. 

After passing under a viaduct, and crossing 
the river, we enter the first of the Gorges de St. 
Georges. The rocks adjoin the road so closely 
as to suggest the Via Mala, in Switzerland, and 
the journey through the first defile, and a second 
which quickly follows, is almost equal in impres- 
siveness to that through the Gorge de Pierre- 
Lys ; the road itself, however, is less satisfactory, 
being covered with thick white dust. It is not 
difficult to determine the cause of this, as at any 
moment one may encounter a timber- waggon at 
a corner, and in any case one will see a timber 
depot by the roadside. Incidentally I may men- 
tion that the only really bad stretches of road 
which I met in the whole of the Pjn^enees were 
confined to the districts where timber-cutting 
was carried on, or where a trans-Pjn^enean railway 
was under construction. 

Beyond the gorge there begins a rise along a 
winding road, bordered with trees and white rocks 
alternating with red. The sinuosities, of course, 
necessitate careful driving, as a vehicle of one 
kind or another may come round a jutting corner 
of rock at any moment ; at the same time, there 
is no difficulty in the driving itself. The road 
continues to be ravine-like in character for several 
kilometres, with pretty cascades on the left, 
until at length the thermal station of Usson is 
reached. Here the road forks, and we keep 
to the left. Just beyond the Baths a finely 




Photo, by] 



THE CHATEAU DUSSON. 



[C. Scott Liiii^say 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 101 

posted chateau may be noticed on the right. A 
few kilometres farther on there is a branch road 
to the left which leads to the Bains d'Escouloubre, 
while to the right another leads up to the Bains 
de Carcanieres. After describing several windings, 
the road runs through the splendid Foret du 
Carcanet. 

Of the remainder of the journey to Mbnt- 
Louis it is impossible to speak too highly. The 
road is of high-class quality and splendidly 
graded ; it is bordered, moreover, by mountain 
ash trees, ablaze with red berries for several 
miles. The neighbourhood of the trees renders 
the journey agreeably cool even in hot weather. 
There are a few rocky corners requiring care, 
but with reasonable driving there is nothing to 
fear ; the care that is requisite, of course, is that 
which presupposes the possibility of incautious- 
ness on the part of another driver. Such an 
experience, in fact, befel our party, for we met 
another car nearly head on, owing to the fact 
that its driver had approached the corner 
at too high a speed and had to swing wide 
accordingly. 

Emerging from the woods at length we enter 
on a grazing " alp," and the country continues 
prairie-like for a long distance, fast travelling 
being now possible. Eventually we begin to 
climb again, and, after a fairly stiff pull, reach 
the summit of the Col de Casteillou, otherwise 
known as the Col de la Quillane, which has an 
altitude of 5,652 feet. The summit affords fine 



102 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

retrospective views of the forest country through 
which we have just passed, and also a far-reaching 
prospect of the outposts of the Eastern Pyrenees, 
including the conical Pic Carlitte. Then follows 
a fine run down of six kilometres to Mont-Louis, 
the highest town in the Pyrenees, enjoying as 
it does an altitude of 5,134 feet. The town is 
all contained within the ramparts of a once 
magnificent fortress — one of the masterpieces of 
the great Vauban. It occupies a striking and 
commanding position on an isolated plateau, 
and dominates the surrounding valleys on every 
side. 

As a fortification, nevertheless, it is no longer 
required, but its height renders it a favourite 
resort for Spaniards from the other side of the 
Pjrrenees, in which respect it rivals the Bains 
de Panticosa. The Pyrenees generally are so 
entirely unexploited as compared with the Alps 
that, though the automobilist may take his 
fill of mountain roads and lofty summits, the 
spots at which one may actually find a resting- 
place at an appreciable height may be counted 
on the fingers of one hand. In the case of Mont- 
Louis, the ordinary traveller may enjoy the 
advantage of a railway approach, but the Bains 
de Panticosa and Gavarnie can only be reached 
by road. Not a single one of the mountain 
passes, however, has an inn at the summit, 
so that it is pre-eminently the automobilist who 
scores in the matter of comfortable touring 
among the Pyrenean ranges. 



FROM TOULOUSE TO MONT-LOUIS. 108 



ITINERARIES. 

Toulouse to Carcassonne and Quillan. 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Phoe. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Toulouse 


— 


— 


— 


Bevel - 


— 


49 


49 


Les Cammazes 


— 


11 


60 


Saissac - - 


1,640 


6 


66 


Montolieu 


— 


6 


72 


Moussoulens - 


— 


5 


77 


Pezens - 


— 


4 


81 


Carcassonne - 


-T- 


9 


90 


Maquens 





4 


94 


Madame 





3 


97 


Rouflaac d'Aude 





5 


102 


Cepie 





6 


108 


Limoux - - - 





6 


114 


Alet 





9 


123 


Couiza - - - 





7 


130 


Campagne-8ur-Aude 





6 


136 


Pont-de-Charla 





4 


140 


Quillan - - - 


955 


2 


142 



The Col de Casteillou. 







Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Quillan - - - 


955 


— 


— 


Belvianes 


— 


4 


4 


St. Martin-Lys 


— 


4 


8 


Axat 


— 


4 


12 


Gesse - - - 


— 


9 


21 


Bains d'Usson 


— 


11 


32 


Bains de Carcanieres 


— 


4 


36 


Puyvalador - 


4,783 


14 


50 


Formigueres - 


4,856 


4 


54 


Col de Casteillou 


5,652 


8 


62 


La Llagone 


5,538 


3 


65 


Mont-Louis 


5,134 


3 


68 



CHAPTER IX. 

SIX ^EASTERN PASSES— THE COLS DE LA 

PERCHE, DE RIGAT, DE TOSAS, DE 

TERNERE, DE LA BATAILLE, AND DE LA 
PRADELLE. 

THE summer visitor who may be revelling 
in the bracing air of Mont-Louis will 
have some difficulty in planning his 
next move. He is within close touch of several 
mountain roads of considerable height and 
eminently suited, therefore, to summer travelling ; 
on the other hand, he is equally near to country 
that is best known, perhaps, to winter visitors. 
Unlike the latter, however, he has two strings 
to his bow, and there is no reason why he 
should not cover the whole ground, for in this 
particular case a descent into the plains does not 
involve protracted travelling on the flat, or through 
country that is in any sense featureless, but 
permits of a couple of side excursions which are 
worth taking for their own sake. 

In the first instance, however, I propose to 
deal with the chain of three passes which leads 
from Mont-Louis into Spain — namely, the Col 
de la Perche, the Col de Rigat, and the Col 
de Tosas ; the last-named is on the direct high- 
way to Barcelona. We may then consider a round 



THE COL DE LA PERCHE. 105 

trip which will include a visit to Vernet-les-Bains, 
and also a divagation from the main road in order 
to explore the little-known Gorges de Galamus. 

It is in no sense a difficult journey over the 
Col de la Perche and the Col de Kigat, their 
respective heights being 5,147 feet and 4,754 feet. 
As Mont-Louis itself, however, has an altitude of 
5,134 feet, and the two cols in question are com- 
paratively close at hand, it is obvious that there 
is not much climbing to be done, unless they 
happen to stand as isolated eminences separated 
by deep valleys. Such, however, is not the case, 
and the three kilometres of road which separate 
Mont-Louis from the Col de la Perche present 
merely easy undulations. Just before the summit 
is reached, however, it is necessary to beware of 
a bad level crossing. The summit is centred 
amid pastures, and on the right may be seen a 
road which leads to Les Esc aides, where there is a 
thermal establishment, and is continued to Ur 
on the Col de Puymorens route. Our road, 
however, descends through the valley of the Eyne, 
and for the most part is of good quality, though 
there are sundry dusty patches, and then rises 
slightly to the Col de Rigat. A beautifully graded 
descent follows to Saillagouse (4,295 feet), 12 
kilometres from Mont-Louis. The road has easy 
windings, and the gradients do not exceed 5 per 
cent. Then follows a pleasant run of nine kilometres 
to Bourg-Madame (3,740 feet) over an excellently 
surfaced road, affording views of fine rolling hills. 

At Bourg-Madame one turns to the right if 



106 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

proposing to go over the Col de Puymorens — a 
fine journey which I must deal with in a subse- 
quent chapter. If the Col de Tosas is to be 
visited, however, it is necessary to have one's 
papers stamped at the douane at Bourg-Madame, 
and then cross the bridge over the Raour to 
Puigcerda, in Spain, the two towns being separated 
by a kilometre only. The French custom-house 
is at one end of the bridge, and the Spanish depot 
is seen on the right immediately after the river 
is crossed. Having satisfied the officials as to 
one's triptyque, one may run up to the summit 
of the Col de Tosas in 22 kilometres, and return to 
Bourg-Madame if out for exploration merely, or 
regard the ascent as the first stage in a journey 
of 157 kilometres to Barcelona if a tour in Spain 
be projected. 

As regards the former alternative, it may be said 
in a word that the road is not of first-class quality ; 
but I am glad to be able to state that a new and 
alternative route is under construction, and, in 
fact, will shortly be completed. It will provide 
better surfaces and easier gradients alike. It is 
being constructed downwards from the summit, 
and is already completed three-fourths of the 
way to Puigcerda. We have already seen how 
the Spanish side of the Col du Somport and the 
Col du Pourtalet have been very much improved 
of late, as also the road from the frontier at L^s 
to Viella, and this creation of a new road on the 
north side of the Col de Tosas is a further gratify- 
ing indication of the fact that the Spanish Govern- 



THE COL DE TOSAS. 107 

ment has realised the importance of road reform. 
This is the more remarkable when we remember 
that railway development is also proceeding apace 
— no fewer than three trans-Pyrenean lines now 
being under construction — and we know only too 
well from unhappy experience that, where railway 
schemes are projected by this or that government, 
road-building is usually given the cold shoulder. 
The view from the summit of the Col de Tosas 
is attractive without being remarkably expansive. 
On the whole, I scarcely think it is worth the 
tourist's while to run up from Bourg-Madame 
and back merely for the sake of the ascent, though 
it may be otherwise when the new road is finished. 
For the benefit, however, of those who may wish 
to cross the Col de Tosas after a tour in Spain, I 
append the following notes with which my friend 
Mr. C. Scott Lindsay has provided me as a result 
of his own experiences last spring : — 

" Leaving Barcelona, the road runs without 
any particular interest for a distance of 61 
kilometres to Vich, up to which point the sur- 
face is mostly bad, and in places distinctly so. 
There are no hills of any importance, but one 
rises gradually most of the time, as also from 
Vich to Bipoll, a distance of 35 kilometres, 
where the road is a little better, though often 
very dusty. At Ripoll the road follows the 
river into a narrowing valley, which culminates 
at Ribas (14 kilometres), which, according to 
my map, is about 3,000 feet high ; but, as the 
road to that point never conveys the impression 



108 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

of having risen perceptibly, one is inclined to 
believe it is a good deal less. Here the real 
ascent of the Col de Tosas begins. The road 
branches off to the left out of Ribas, and com- 
mences to rise moderately steeply at once. 
For about 25 kilometres the rise is continual, 
varying from fairly steep to parts where a 
moderately powerful car could run on top 
speed. As the contour of the mountain is 
followed round there are many bends and some 
fairly sharp curves, but no ' hairpin ' bends 
proper. The road is fairly broad, and in 
good weather the surface is moderately firm 
and not too rough, although stones and occa- 
sional boulders are always to be expected in 
Spain. Innumerable small torrents, which are 
bridged, cross the road, and there is always 
plenty of water handy in case of an engine 
boiling. After crossing the summit great care 
must be taken, about half a mile down, to 
take the lower (or left hand) of the alternative 
roads at a fork. That to the right is the new 
and very much improved road to Puigcerda, 
but at present it ends in a cul-de-sac. These 
roads have no signposts or other indications." 
Harking back now to Mont-Louis, one may 
proceed in imagination along the valley of the 
Tet to Villefranche-de-Conflent, from which an 
ascent may be made to Vernet-les-Bains. There 
is a glorious run down of five kilometres from 
Mont-Louis to Fontpedrouse (3,448 feet) over a 
good broad road, with ever recurrent bends but 



THE COL DE LA BATAILLE. Ill 

no " hairpin " corners. The fall is one of 1,686 feet 
in seven kilometres. 

Beyond Fontpedrouse a particularly striking 
railway bridge comes into view, the Viaduc 
Sejournet, so called after the name of its con- 
structor. It stands at no less than 213 feet above 
the Tet, and is composed of sixteen granite 
arches, with a total length of 778 feet; but the 
illustration herewith shows the interesting way 
in which the superstructure is supported in the 
ravine itself. The line of railway which this 
viaduct carries is the newest and, at the same 
time, the highest in France, and runs from Mont- 
Louis to Perpignan. It is electrically worked, as 
also will be the three trans-Pyrenean lines which 
are still under construction. With one of these, 
that from Oloron to Jaca, we have already made 
acquaintance ; the second is to lead from St. 
Girons to Saragossa ; while the third is to connect 
Ax-les-Thermes with Bourg-Madame, and then 
follow the Col de Tosas route to Barcelona, thus 
affording a straight run from Paris, by way of 
Toulouse. 

As one proceeds farther along the valley in 
the direction of Villefranche, repeated opportunities 
are afforded of noticing the bold construction of 
the Perpignan line. The road passes close to 
another fine viaduct near the hamlet of St. Thomas, 
while a little farther on is the Pont Gisclard, a 
rigid suspension bridge which spans the Tet 262 
feet above the stream, and is no less than 768 feet 
in length. It was designed by a military engineer. 



112 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

the Commandant Gisclard, and is so constructed 
as to do away entirely with oscillations of any 
kind when a train is passing across. Its inventor, 
nevertheless, did not live to see the fruits of his 
genius, as he was unfortunately one of the victims 
of the terrible accident which took place at the 
official inauguration of the line in 1909. 

The road continues to descend, though less 
steeply, to Thues, with its two thermal establish- 
ments, and on to a fine ruined chateau, and thence 
to Villefranche-de-Conflent. There are many 
" Villef ranches " in France, but this quaint little 
town is by no means the least interesting of the 
group. It is picturesquely situated in a gorge at 
the junction of the Tet and the Verne t, and is com- 
pletely enclosed by fortifications, in the design of 
which the great Vauban had a share. Above 
the town on a hillside stands a fort, which is 
approached by a zigzag pathway, and also by 
a subterranean staircase. 

A glance at the map will show that a side 
road leads from Villefranche to Vernet-les-Bains, 
the distance between the two places being six kilo- 
metres, with a difference in altitude of 706 feet. 
The road ascends the hillside in windings and is of 
fairly good surface ; but a sharp look-out must be 
kept for occasional big stones which are left on the 
road by carters, who use them to "scotch" the wheels 
of their vehicles when giving the horses a rest. 

The completion of the Mont-Louis to Per- 
pignan line in the spring of 1911 has meant much, 
of course, to a place like Vernet-les-Bains, and 



THE COL DE LA BATAILLE. 113 

it bids fair to become one of the popular resorts 
of the Pyrenees, where the general traveller is 
concerned, especially as it stands at an altitude of 
2,133 feet, which renders it suitable for visiting 
in winter and summer alike. To the automobilist 
embarked on a summer tour it is a very suitable 
place for a halt over-night, or for a mid-day call 
alike; I am speaking, of course, from the point 
of view of the man who is making a continuous 
tour by a prescribed itinerary. There is nothing 
in the world to prevent his staying at Vernet-les- 
Bains, or any other resort, as long as he chooses, 
if he has the time to afford, for the hotels are 
good and the modern town is attractively laid 
out. The thermal establishments are complete 
and on up-to-date lines, and are fed by twelve 
springs. In the way of out-and-home excursions 
it is necessary, of course, as there is no road into 
Spain, to descend to Villefranche, with one ex- 
ception ; half-way down the valley a carriage 
road branches off to the right, and ascends with 
numerous windings in 20 kilometres to the chalet- 
hotel des Cortalets, which is situated at an alti- 
tude of 7,217 feet, and commands magnificent 
views. It is from here that Le Canigou, the 
monarch of the Eastern Pyrenees, is usually 
ascended. There are also numerous pleasant 
walks in the neighbourhood of Vernet-les-Bains, 
and a favourite excursion is that to the Abbaye 
de St. Martin-du-Canigou. This picturesque build- 
ing dates from the eleventh century, but its 
restoration was undertaken only a few years ago 

I 



114 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

by the Bishop of Perpignan. Its striking position 
on an isolated peak may be readily appreciated 
from the accompanying illustration. 

Continuing our route, however, along the Tet 
valley, we follow a good and still descending 
road to Prades, another thermal resort, and 
thence to Vine a, which also has its bathing estab- 
lishment. Soon after passing the latter town we 
turn left and then right under a railway bridge, 
and head for the Col de Ternere. The car breasts 
the rise, however, in a few seconds. At the top 
the road bends to the right, and the descent is 
as brief as the ascent ; meanwhile, however, the 
Canigou has been seen to splendid advantage on 
the right. Thenceforward one follows a practically 
level road to Millas, flanked on the left by the 
range of hills known as the Corbieres, which 
present a curious appearance with their bright 
yellow soil and scanty vegetation. After passing 
through lUe-sur-la-Tet, a Uttle town of Spanish 
aspect, the road is well shaded by thick groves. 

At Millas the option is afforded of continuing 
straight forward to Perpignan, or turning to the 
left and crossing the Col de la Bataille. As the 
seeking out of hilly country, however, is one's 
chief purpose in touring among the Pjnrenees in 
summer, there is nothing particular to be gained 
in going on to Perpignan ; in my own case, in- 
deed, this was rendered impossible by the fact 
that cholera had made its appearance there. 

The Col de la Bataille road rises fairly steeply 
for a short distance, and then affords a splendid 




Plioto. by] 



THE ABBAYE DE ST. MARTIN-DU-CANIGOU, NEAR 
VERNET-LES-BAINS. 



[Liiboiiclie 



THE COL DE LA BATAILLE. 115 

run with a moderate gradient. There is a left 
turn at a bridge, and the road then becomes rather 
more winding and steep again. The surface is 
mostly good, but there are one or two soft patches. 
On the way up we pass a huge field of black 
grapes, reminding us that we are in the heart of a 
wine-growing country. The col is only 876 feet 
in height, but it is worth taking, as it affords a 
decided change of view. A nice winding descent 
follows, and the road, after leaving Montner on 
the right, runs through a grove to Estagel. Here 
the route nationale from Perpignan is joined. It 
is a fine, white road, made of stone from the 
neighbouring crags. There is a level crossing 
a few kilometres farther on before reaching 
Maury. After a rise we get a fine view as the 
mountains come into the picture ahead, in addi- 
tion to the two ranges between which we have 
been running from Estagel. 

At St. Paul-de-Fenouillet one may usefully 
leave the main road and turn to the right, for the 
sake of exploring the Gorges de Galamus. We 
ascend a good hard, winding road, mostly unfenced 
on the left, but quite safe. It is rock-hewn, and 
in places very high above the stream, while huge 
limestone rocks tower above us on the right. 
The road was built so recently as 1892, and affords 
a short cut from St. Paul to Couiza. After run- 
ning right through the picturesque gorge, how- 
ever — it is impossible to turn midway — we re- 
trace our tracks to the main road, the downward 
journey being even more interesting than the 

I 2 



116 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 



ascent, with a fine view of the Canigou in the 
distance after emerging from the gorge. A practi- 
cally straight run follows to Axat, mostly level, but 
including the ascent of the Col de la Pradelle 
(1,752 feet), a pretty winding road with a 5 per 
cent, gradient. This col must not be confounded 
with the much more formidable Col de Pradel. 
Near the village of Pradelle is a striking view of 
the Chateau de Puilaurens, built on a high rock 
with a great crag behind. 



ITINERARIES. 




The Cols de 


LA PERGHE 


AND DE RiGAT. 






Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Mont-Louis - 


- 5,134 


— 


— 


Col de la PercJie 


- 5,147 


3 


3 


Col de Rigat - 


- 4,754 


3 


6 


Saillagouse 


- 4,295 


6 


12 


Sainte-Leocadie 


— 


4 


16 


Hix 


— 


4 


20 


Bourg-Madame 


- 3,740 


1 


21 


The Col de Tosas. 








Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Bourg-Madame 


- 3,740 


— 


— 


Puigcerda 


- 3,904 


1 


1 


Pont de Soler - 


— 


4 


5 


Hostal de Molina 


— 


9 


14 


Col de Tosas - 


- 5,856 


8 


22 


La Cantina 


— 


5 


27 


Ribas 


— 


20 


47 


Bains de Ribas 


— 


5 


52 


Ripoll - 


- 2,070 


9 


61 


Vich - 


— 


35 


96 


Barcelona 


__ 


61 


157 



m 




as^-*. 




Photo, hy] 



THE EXIT FROM THE GORGES OF GALAMUS. 



IBtiilles 



SIX EASTERN PASSES. 117 

MONT-LOUIS TO VERNET-LES-BAINS. 







Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Mont-Louis - 


5,134 


— 


— 


Fontp6drouse - 


3,448 


7 


7 


Thues - 


2,713 


5 


12 


Olette - 


1,991 


6 


18 


Serdinya 


— 


5 


23 


Villefranche-de-Con- 








flent - 


1,427 


5 


28 


Vernet-les-Bains - 


2,133 


6 


34 



The Cols de Tern^re, de la Bataille, and de 
LA Pradelle. 







Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Villefranche - 


1,427 








Ria - - - 


— 


4 


4 


Prades - - - 


1,148 


2 


6 


Marquixanes - 


— 


5 


11 


Vinca - - _ 


860 


4 


15 


Col de Ternere 


656 


3 


18 


Ille-sur-la-Tet 




7 


25 


Neffiach 


— 


4 


29 


Millas - 


328 


3 


32 


Col de la Bataille 


876 


4 


36 


Estagel - 




6 


42 


Mauray - 


— 


10 


52 


St. Paul-de-Fen- 








ouillet 


860 


8 


60 


Gorges de Galamus - 


_ 


4 


64 


Back to St. Paul-de- 








Fenouillet - 


— 


4 


68 


Caudies-de-St. Paul 


1,076 


11 


79 


Col de la Pradelle - 


1,752 


6 


85 


Axat - - - 


— 


8 


93 



CHAPTER X, 

MORE EASTERN PASSES — THE COL DU 
PERTHUS— A GLORIOUS RUN OVER THE 
COLS DU PORTEL, DES SEPT^FRfiRES, 
DE MARMARE, AND DE CHIOULA— THE 
COL DE PUYMORENS. 

IN the extreme south-eastern corner of the 
Eastern P3rrenees stands the Col du Perthus, 
a road which offers the lowest winter route on 
the east into Spain ; its elevation, in fact, is only 
951 feet, and it offers no inducement, therefore, to 
the summer tourist to make a special journey in that 
direction. The cols of low elevation are interesting 
enough when they occur as incidents in an itinerary 
of which the main purpose is something more 
formidable and picturesque alike ; but one does 
not cross a large tract of country for the sake of 
rising to a height of less than 1,000 feet. I mention 
the Col du Perthus, therefore, merely as a matter 
of record because it is a gateway into Spain. 
As such it is not without its interesting associations, 
having frequently been crossed by armies ; and 
it is fortified on the French side by the Fort de 
Bellegarde, which, though not actually designed 
by Vauban, still stands in the form in which he 
constructed it. It is recorded that Pompey 




THE FIRST BHSD UN THE COL DU PORTEL, ON THE ASCENT 
FROM QUILLAN. 



THE COL DU PERTHUS. 119 

erected on the col his own monument, to which 
he fixed a vainglorious inscription to the effect 
that from the Alps to the last extremity of Spain 
he had forced submission to the Roman Republic 
from 876 cities and towns. Julius Caesar erected 
another tablet twenty years later, but the boundary 
nowadays is only marked by stones. Branching 
off from the road to the Col du Perthus is a by- 
road to two well-known thermal resorts — namely, 
Amelie-les-Bains and Prats-de-Mollo — while Le 
Boulou itself, where the division occurs, is also 
well known from the same cause, and, in fact, 
sends the water from its springs all over the 
P3rrenees. When one asks for " Vichy " one is 
offered " Boulou " as a matter of course, even 
so far west as Luchon. 

We may now hark back to a district a little west 
of that which was dealt with in Chapter IX, and 
consider another and very interesting route into 
Spain — namely, the Col de Puymorens, variously 
known also as Puymaurens and Pimorent. This 
col is on the direct through route from Paris to 
Barcelona, and, as a matter of fact, is now being 
pierced by a tunnel, as the new electric line 
which is in course of construction between Ax- 
les-Thermes and Barcelona also takes the same 
direction. 

If one were travelling right through from 
Toulouse one would pass through Pamiers, Foix, 
and Tarascon to Ax-les-Thermes ; but, as we are 
embarked in imagination upon a cruise among 
the cols of the Pyrenees, in the quest of the 



120 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

picturesque, we may approach the Col de Puy- 
morens for the time being by another route. 
In Chapter IX we ended up a round trip from 
Mont-Louis at Axat, and a reference to the map 
will show that the two roads connect that town 
with Ax-les-Thermes. The shorter of the two 
is by way of the Gorges of the Rebenty and the 
Col de Pradel ; but this is a journey of question- 
able desirability, though I shall have something 
to say later as to the sporting experiences which 
it may afford. I have no hesitation, however, 
in recommending the alternative route by way of 
Quillan, the Col du Portel, the Col des Sept- 
Freres, the Col de Marmare, and the Col de 
Chioula. The first stage, from Axat to Quillan, 
is but a repetition, of course, of the run through 
the Gorge de Pierre-Lys, which has already been 
described in a previous chapter ; incidentally it 
may be remarked that, by the time the journey 
over the series of cols just mentioned above has 
been accomplished, the traveller will have realised 
that the heroic work of the Abbe Armand in 
piercing the " Trou du Cure " did not merely 
result in creating a road to his poor village of 
St. Martin-Lys, but had far-reaching effects. 
Without his tunnel there would have been no 
connection between Quillan and Axat, and, in 
all probability, the continuation from Axat to 
Mont-Louis might never have been constructed. 
It offers, as the map will show, a much easier 
and straighter road to Spain from Quillan than 
that by the cols on the west ; and, though it is 



THE COL DU PORTEL. 121 

not a matter of moment to automobile owners, 
it is of obvious importance to other types of road 
traveller. 

The touring motorist, however, is free to 
enjoy every option alike which provides him with 
access to the picturesque, and there is nothing 
equivocal about the journey from Quillan to 
Ax-les-Thermes. It is a route, nevertheless, 
which the ordinary visitor to the Pyrenees would 
probably never come across. He might pass 
through Quillan in going from east to west, or 
vice versa, but he would be tolerably certain to 
proceed to or from Foix or Pamiers and Ax-les- 
Thermes, and so miss a particularly interesting 
experience. 

Before leaving the quaint little town of Quillan 
the tourist should seek out the Place de la Michance, 
in order to inspect the bronze statue, by Bon- 
nassieux, which is there erected to the Abbe 
Felix Armand, of Pierre-Lys fame. After this act 
of homage the car may be headed westwards 
out of the town, and a good hard road is struck, 
which rises steeply above the valley in which 
Quillan nestles. Than the Col du Portel road one 
could wish for nothing finer in the way of gradients 
and sweeping curves ; and, as a sample of the 
latter, I commend the illustration of the first 
bend to the reader's attention. As one rises 
higher and higher the ascent affords glorious 
views of the Eastern Pyrenees, while the road 
unwinds itself beautifully below, and bears a 
close resemblance to the Col de la Faucille in the 



122 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Juras, between Geneva and Les Rousses. After 
six kilometres of climbing, an important junction 
is reached ; the road straight forward leads on to 
Puivert, but we take the alternative road to the 
left, and continue the ascent of the Col du Portel, 
the surface still being super-excellent, and the 
views of the most expansive description. Nearer 
the summit one finds a belvedere, at which one 
may well pause and enjoy the superb panorama. 
The variety of altitudes and outlines alike in the 
mountains that stretch below one's feet is amaz- 
ing, and is only to be excelled, perhaps, in the 
case of a panorama which we shall come to later 
— namel}^, that from the Col de Chioula. 

In 10 kilometres from Quillan we reach 
Condons (2,756 feet), above which stretches the 
beautiful Forest of Callong. A kilometre or so 
beyond the village there is a fork, not shown on 
the maps, but at which one must keep to the left. 
For a short stage the road becomes dusty, as there 
are marble quarries at Condons, but it afterwards 
improves. Then follows an interesting run to 
Belcaire, 30 kilometres from Quillan, along a new 
road, which is curiously intersected at times by 
an older road. This is sometimes seen on the 
right and sometimes on the left' ; the new road, 
however, is much straighter in character. It 
runs through pleasantly cultivated country, bor- 
dered by the forests of Callong and Picaussel, to 
Belcaire (3,264 feet), and is in no sense difficult 
to follow, save that one must keep to the right 
at a fork just beyond the village of La Peyre, 



THE COL DES SEPT-FRfiRES. 123 

and again at another which is encountered several 
kilometres farther on. 

Belcaire, with its ancient chateau, stands 
picturesquely on a knoll, and is seen to best 
advantage after one has passed through the town 
and is well on the way towards the Col des Sept- 
Freres. The road rises to the summit (4,133 feet), 
leaving the village of Camurac on the right, by 
easy windings in 5*7 kilometres, and then descends 
slightly in 3| kilometres to Prades (4,068 feet), 
where there is a fourteenth-century chateau, 
reputed to have belonged to Queen Marguerite. 
The village of Prades, of course, must not be 
confounded with the town of that name which 
is on the road from Villefranche-de-Conflent to 
Perpignan. The road then reascends in easy 
gradients at first, but rather steeper later, to the 
Col de Marmare (4,461 feet), the rise being one of 
393 feet in 3|- kilometres, over an excellent road, 
which winds through the pleasant valley of the 
Hers, the green pastures of which are surmounted 
by beautifully wooded slopes. 

Here the tourist may make a choice between 
continuing in the same direction, and descending 
the valley of Cousson to Luzenac, or of crossing 
the Col de Chioula and descending to Ax-les- 
Thermes. It is the latter alternative, however, 
which we must consider for the present. The Col 
de Chioula road turns sharply to the left from 
the Col de Marmare, and ascends in two kilo- 
metres to the summit, which has an altitude of 
4,707 feet. The difference between the two cols. 



124 ^ |THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

it will be seen, is only 246 feet, and there is about 
a quarter of a mile of 8 per cent., but the rest of 
the distance is less than 6 per cent. 

Truly superb is the view from the Chioula 
summit, offering as it does uninterrupted prospects 
towards every point of the compass. The ranges 
comprised in the circular panorama include nearly 
a hundred separate peaks, of which the highest 
is the Pic d'Estats, 10,305 feet, while other pro- 
minent objects are the Pic de Tarbezou, the Pic 
de Brasseil, the Pic d'Auriol, the Pic de RuUe, 
the Pic de Montcalm, the Pic de Mont-Valier, 
and the Pic des Trois Seigneurs. So advan- 
tageous is the Col de Chioula, in fact, as a view- 
point that it commands no fewer than seven 
separate valleys — namely, those of the Lauze or 
Ascou, the^ Oriege or Orlu, the Orgeix, the Nabre. 
the Ariege, the Nagear, and the Lagal. 

On the Taride map the route over the Col de 
Chioula and down to Ax-les-Thermes is summarily 
described as " impraticdbley As a matter of 
fact, it is nothing of the kind, and may be taken 
by any car with good brakes and a good lock. 
The descent is one of 2,351 feet in 9| kilometres, 
which is somewhat formidable, it is true, but that 
is a very different matter from being dismissed 
as absolutely impossible. For 7J kilometres the 
gradient is 11 per cent., or 1 in 9, and there are 
five acute "hairpin" corners, with a radius of five 
metres. Then follows a like distance of 10 per 
cent., but without lacets, after which the gradients 
range from 6 to 8 per cent., with another set of 



iiyfriM-r. 



Luzam 



AX-US-TWJMFS 




WORT 
LAFAJOLU 



WENS 



VHOSPtTAUT 



POPTA 









§1 

E 
^51 






BOI/ffS'MAOAME 



UR 



^ 






MONf-LOUIS 



■^^ 
C^ 






Sr 



THE PASSES BETWEEN QUILLAN AND THE FEONTIER OF SPAIN, 



THE COL DE CHIOULA. 127 

six "hairpin" corners which are sharp, though 
not quite so appreciably so as those nearer the 
summit, the radii being from six to eight metres. 
Below the village of Sorgeat, five kilometres above 
Ax-les-Thermes, occurs the second group above 
referred to, and at the second corner the road from 
the Col de Pradel joins in on the left, so that the re- 
mainder of the descent is common to the two routes. 

Ax-les-Thermes is finely situated amid an 
amphitheatre of mountains at the junction of 
the Ariege with the Oriege, the Lauze, and 
the Fouis rivers. It is a town of about 1,500 
inhabitants, and of well-established popularity 
as a thermal station. Its season extends from 
June 1st to October 1st, but from the middle 
of July to September 8th is the period during 
which the influx of visitors is most pronounced. 
The baths are fed by over sixty springs, and 
there are four thermal establishments in all. 

A curiosity of the town is the huge rectangular 
basin, some 36 feet in length by 30 feet wide, 
known as the Bassin des Ladres or des Lepreux ; 
it was built in the year 1260, by Roger IV, 
CJomte de Foix, at the request of the king, St. 
Louis. In the Middle Ages it served for the 
treatment of leprosy, being used by Crusaders 
returning from the Holy Land ; to-day, how- 
ever, it is used by women-folk for the washing of 
linen. Among other objects of interest are the 
ruins of the Chateau MaiKes, built on one of 
the numerous isolated rocks in the immediate 
neighbourhood of the town. 



128 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Thoroughly refreshing is the run over the 
Gol de Puymorens, to undertake which has been 
the main object of the descent from the Col de 
Chioula to Ax-les-Thermes. The latter may or 
may not have proved wholly enjoyable, according 
to whether your passengers were impressionable^ 
as the French say, or whether you yourself 
have not been quite sure if your foot-brake 
would not have been the better for a little pre- 
liminary adjustment, or whether the steering 
lock has been comfortably equal to the five-metre 
curves near the summit. But the Col de Puy- 
morens need induce no tremors on either score, 
and will prove the more enjoyable by way 
of contrast to the previous encounter with the 
difficulties of the Chioula, if such there have 
been. It is true that the dear M. Taride, as 
I said in the introductory chapter, has described 
the Pass of Puymorens as " peu praticahle pour 
les automobiles " ; but there is such an expe- 
dient as drawing upon one's imagination for 
one's facts. Certainly no one who ever drove 
over the Col de Puymorens in a car could 
have voiced such an opinion unless he were 
so incompetent as to be unfit to drive on the 
flattest of roads, or owned a car which was unfits 
for use under any conditions whatsoever. But, 
lest any misgivings should still lurk in the reader's 
mind, I need only add that on the Col de 
Puymorens, as on several other routes against 
which M. Taride proffers his ill-advised warnings, 
public-service cars are regularly plying during 



THE COL DE PUYMORENS. 129 

the summer over the road which is " hardly 
practicable for motor-cars." 

The Col de Puymorens has the distinction 
of being the highest in the Eastern Pyrenees, 
and is only surpassed in the entire list of mountain 
routes by the Col du Tourmalet itself ; the 
former has an altitude of 6,292 feet, as against 
the 6,961 feet of the pride of the Hautes Pyre- 
nees. In picturesqueness the latter is much the 
superior, not only in itself, but by reason of the 
magnificent prospects it opens up from point to 
point. But though the Puymorens road leads 
through curiously barren ranges, truly picturesque 
only after the snows have fallen, even their 
gaunt ruggedness is attractive in its way, by 
its very contrast with more verdant scenes 
already passed through, as well as serving to 
heighten the effect of those which have yet to 
come. As a drive, pure and simple, however, 
the journey is one of the best in the Pyrenees, 
for the road is steep enough and high enough 
to enable one to rejoice in the handling of a good 
car without in any way overtaxing it»? powers. 
As a matter of fact, the gradients do not exceed 
5 per cent. ; and, as an old campaigner on 
mountain routes, I may say that there is no 
sensation more delightful in pass-storming than 
that of ascending a lofty road at a fairly high 
rate of speed. On the 18-h.p. Austin we 
covered the 28 kilometres to the summit, a rise 
of 3,936 feet, in 40 minutes, and descended the 
23 kilometres to Ur in 35. Surely even the most 



130 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES, 

inexperienced of tourists may imagine what it 
feels like to breast an ascent of close on four 
thousand feet in such gallant style, and to glide 
down the other side in almost equally rapid 
fashion. That, by the way, is a distinction which 
the non-mountaineer requires to appreciate ; with 
a good car one can climb more quickly than one 
deems it prudent to descend. 

It is a good broad road which leads from 
Ax to the foot of the pass at L'Hospitalet, in 18 
kilometres, the most noticeable features of the 
route being the rocky defile of Berduquet, four 
kilometres out, with a cascade, and the fine view 
from the Pont de I'Harenc at seven kilometres. At 
Merens the road has risen to 3,461 feet in eight 
kilometres, and the next stage of ten kilometres to 
L'Hospitalet involves a further rise to 4,711 feet. 
For some distance the road is Hned with poplars ; 
but, at a T.C.F. danger-board indicating a tour- 
nant brusque, we begin the ascent of several 
zigzags, beautifully graded, and romp up in fine 
style. At the village of L'Hospitalet a sharp 
turning and level crossing are encountered, and 
the road rises to the summit in 10 kilometres. 
The corners are not difficult, but it is necessary 
to look out for occasional big stones used as 
" scotches " by the drivers of carts. Great num- 
bers of cattle are seen browsing on the pastures 
as the summit is neared, but the environment of 
mountains is singularly wild and bare, though 
not devoid of elements of grandeur. The summit 
is the only one in the Pyrenees which has a 



THE COL DE PUYMORENS. lai 

habitable building — in this case a road-menders' 
refuge, which is strongly reminiscent of the 
little hospice on the summit of the Julier Pass 
in Switzerland. 

The descent involves a fall of 968 feet in 6J 
kilometres to the village of Porte, with sweeping 
bends, and the road then crosses the E,io de Carol 
and runs through a defile, which leads in another 
3 kilometres to Porta (4,951 feet). Lower down, 
the river is again crossed and then recrossed 
near Courbassil. Gradually the outlook becomes 
more verdant, and the little towns of Latour-de- 
Carol and Ur are both situated amid fertile 
surroundings. Ur has an altitude of 3,923 feet, 
so that the total descent has been one of 2,369 
feet in 23 kilometres. Another four kilometres 
of practically level road brings one to Bourg- 
Madame, from which, as we have already seen 
in the previous chapter, the Col de Tosas may be 
ascended into Spain, or one may turn to the left 
and cross the Cols de Rigat and de la Perche. 



ITINERARIES. 




The Col du Perthus. 




Intermediate 
Place. Altitnde. Distances. 


Progressive 
Totals. 


{Feet.) {Kils.) 
Perpignan - - 121 — 
Pollestres - - — 6 


{Kils.) 
6 


Le Boulou - - — 14 


20 


Bains de Boulou - — 2 


22 


L'Ecluse - - — 4 


26 


Col du Perthus - 961 3 


29 


La Junquera (Span- 
ish Customs) - — 6 


35 




E 2 



182 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 



Place. 

Pont de Campmany 
Pont de Molins 


AUitnide. 
{Feet.) 


Intermediate Progressive 

Distances. Totals. 

{Kils.) [Kils.) 

8 43 

5 48 


Figueras 
Barcelona 


128 


5 53 
158 211 



The Cols du Portel, des Sept-Fr^res, de 
Marmare, de Chioula, and de Puymorens. 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


AUit'ude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




[Feet:) 


{Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Axat 


— 


— 


— 


Quillan - 


955 


12 


12 


Col du Portel - 


1,968 


6 


18 


Condons 


2,756 


4 


22 


La Pejrre 


— 


5 


27 


Belcaire 


3,264 


15 


42 


Camurac 


— 


5 


47 


Col des Sept-Freres 


4,133 


h 


47i 


Bridge - 


— 


^ 


50 


Prades - 


4,068 


1 


51 


Col de Marmare 


4,461 


3i 


54i 


Col de Chioula 


4,707 


2 


56i 


Ignaux - 


— 


4f 


61 


Sorgeat - 


— 


i 


61^ 


Ax-les-Thermes 


2,356 


4i 


66 


Berduquet Defile - 


— 


4 


70 


Pont de I'Harenc - 


— 


3 


73 


Merens - 


3,461 


1 


74 


Pont de Saillens 


— 


6* 


804 


L'Hospitalet - 


4,711 


H 


84" 


Sharp turn east- 






I 


wards 


— 


7 


91 


Col de Puymorens - 


6,292 


3 


94 


Porte - 


5,324 


6i 


lOOi 


Porta 


4,951 


3 


103| 


Latour-de-Carol 


— 


8^ 


112 


Enveitg - 


4,144 


2 


114 


Frontier 


— 


2 


116 


Ur - - - 


3,923 


1 


117 


Bourg-Madame 


3,740 


4 


121 



CHAPTER XL 

OVER THE COL DE PRADEL— A THRILLING 
EXPERIENCE— FROM THE COL DE MAR- 
MARE TO THE COLS DE PORT DE 
PORTET DE BURET AND DES ARES, 

QUITE the most extraordinary experience 
I have ever had in my mountain 
rambUngs was a jom-ney over the Col 
de Pradel. At the time that I crossed it, in 
September, 1911, with my friend Mr. J. T. Burton- 
Alexander, it had been traversed by a motor- 
car on only five occasions. He himself had 
already been over it once, and asked if I were 
game for an adventure. Obviously there could 
be only one reply, for " What man has done, 
man can do." All the same, I think it highly 
probable that the road will never again be crossed 
by a motor-car, for the circumstances are peculiar. 
The gradients are steep, it is true, but they are 
in no sense insuperable ; and, though the corners 
are exceedingly acute, they can be rounded by a 
car with a good lock, although we ourselves were 
in difficulties from the fact that we lacked that 
desideratum. The essence of the situation, how- 
ever, is that the road has ceased to be main- 
tained, and is almost impassable accordingly ; 
and, unless the district authorities elect to take 



134 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

the matter in hand, it will be unwise, to say 
the least, for any motorist to attempt to follow 
our example. Nevertheless I enjoyed the experi- 
ence, save for sundry thrilling moments during 
which the possibilities of being transported to 
another world were more imminent than remote. 

The Col de Pradel lies on a cross route between 
Axat and Ax-les-Thermes, and is merely an 
alternative to the one from Quillan to Ax-les- 
Thermes which I described in Chapter X. The 
pass itself does not begin until the village of Niort 
is reached, and to that point the road is carrossahle, 
if rough. As there happens to be a cross road 
by Espezel which links up with the road from 
Quillan, travellers from Axat are under no 
necessity to go all the way round by Quillan ; 
hence it is perfectly simple for them to avoid 
the Col de Pradel by going through Belcaire and 
over the Col des Sept-Freres and the Col de 
Marmare. 

From Axat to Ax-les-Thermes is a journey of 
52 kilometres, of which the pass occupies nearly 
half. Let it be said at once that, even if no 
attempt be made to cross the latter, the road 
from Axat to the junction of the cross road 
through Espezel is well worth taking, as it leads 
through four gorges of much picturesqueness — 
the Defiles de Joucou, d'Able, de Niort, and 
des Adouxes. We leave Axat by the main road 
which leads to the Gorge de Pierre-Lys and 
Quillan ; but, at a fork a kilometre or so out of 
the town, we keep to the left and follow the left 




THE VILLAGE OF LA FAJOLLE, ON THE COL DE PRADEL ROU 11, 
(Note the narrowness of the roadway.) 



OVER THE COL DE PRADEL. 135 

bank of the Rebenty river as far as Marsa, where 
the road crosses to the right bank. The road 
runs the whol'. way, with a sUght upward gradient, 
through a narrow but well-wooded valley until 
the village of Joucou is reached ; from there 
onwards the environment changes to one of white 
limestone rocks of great height. The first gorge, 
the Defile de Joucou, recalls that of the Pierre- 
Lys, but there are three tunnels instead of one, 
the longest being 197 feet in length. 

Then one emerges amid pastures, in the centre 
of which is a timber depot ; but very quickly 
the scene closes in again, and the Defile d'Able 
is entered ; it is even narrower and wilder of 
aspect than that of Joucou. The road throughout 
is rough and narrow, but of the picturesqueness 
of the route there can be no two opinions. The 
scene widens out again, however, at Belfort, 
and here one finds numerous sawmills ; and it 
may be said in a word that the whole of the 
remainder of the route to the pass is devoted 
to the timber-cutting industry. Beyond Belfort 
we pass through yet another gorge, the Defile de 
Niort, with rocks of fantastic shape and wonder- 
ful colouring. The road already mentioned to 
Espezel breaks off on the right, while a little 
farther on another fork occurs, a branch road 
to the left leading to Rodome. We keep straight 
forward, however, and shortly afterwards enter 
Niort (2,625 feet), just beyond which another 
branch road to the right leads to the Col des 
Sept-Freres. 



136 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Still following the Rebenty river we rise 
gradually to Merial (3,281 feet). There is so 
little traffic on this road that it is quite on the 
cards that one may find, as we did at Merial, 
the whole of the roadway filled with straw, which 
is being threshed by the villagers, and they view 
the arrival of a motor-car with the most intense 
surprise. Here we cross to the left bank of the 
river, and in another couple of kilometres reach 
the last village on the route — namely. La FajoUe — 
the road having meanwhile become very rough, 
with occasional boulders. It is nevertheless 
exceedingly wild and picturesque, and runs 
through yet another gorge, the Defile des 
Adouxes, bordered with rocks of reddish stone. 
La FajoUe is indeed a curiosity. The roadway 
through the village is almost completely blocked 
with logs of timber, as my photograph will show, 
as also the fact that there was very little room 
for the car between the houses and the bridge. 
The place, indeed, is a sort of woodcutters' 
preserve, and through locomotion is about the 
last thing with which they are called upon to 
trouble themselves. 

The journey has been none too easy during 
the last few kilometres, but what follows is of 
a much more sporting character. La FajoUe 
has an altitude of 3,445 feet, while the summit of 
the pass is 5,512 feet, and is reached in nine 
kilometres. The pass is not merely steep, how- 
ever — the gradients ranging from 7 to 14 per 
cent. — but the road itself is of a type unparalleled 



OVER THE COL DE PRADEL. 187 

in all my experience. Beyond the village the 
surface becomes rougher than ever, and for a 
time threatens to be impassable owing to deep 
ruts and huge boulders. After entering the zone 
of trees it improves slightly for a time, but then 
deteriorates anew. One has not merely to dodge 
rocks and boulders, but even logs that have been 
thrown haphazard on the road by feckless wood- 
cutters. So narrow is the roadway that, as a 
matter of fact, it does not suggest a road at all, 
but presents just the same appearance as a path- 
way through a wood. At one point the road 
crosses a bridge which is in so dilapidated a con- 
dition that one almost hesitates to cross it ; and, 
if for no other reason, I should dissuade tourists 
from taking this route until assured that it has 
been overhauled throughout. 

A tottering bridge, however, is not the only 
thing to be feared, for eventually the road is found 
to be overgrown with grass, and the track virtually 
disappears ; one can only pick one's way, in fact, 
because there is a precipice on the right and a 
bank on the left, and barely room for the car be- 
tween the two. Several "hairpin" corners, more- 
over, have to be negotiated. Eventually, however, 
one leaves the zone of trees and drives over an 
" alp " to the summit. It affords a magnificent 
prospect of the Hautes Pyrenees on the west, but 
I was unable to obtain a permanent record thereof 
because, with my usual luck, the sun was straight 
ahead ; nevertheless, the illustration herewith 
(taken from the opposite direction) of the car 



138 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

actually at the summit will always be viewed by 
the participants in this trip as an interesting 
reminder of what up to now had been a most 
sporting and exhilarating drive. 

On the descent, however, the element of sport 
merged into that of actual danger. The track was 
completely grass-covered, and will soon be quite 
obliterated ; even in 1911 it was all but undis- 
coverable in places, so that we could hardly trace 
our way across the pastures. Several caniveaux 
were also encountered. For a time, nevertheless, 
it was possible to admire the splendid views 
which the descent afforded, both in the middle 
distance and of the lofty ranges far beyond ; 
but eventually we struck a series of six "hairpin" 
corners, of only five metres radius. At each of 
these we were all but tied up in a knot, as it were, 
although the situation would have been rendered 
passable with a wider steering lock ; but more 
than once it seemed as though we should have to 
essay the superhuman task of pulling the car 
round, although we had provided ourselves with a 
wooden " scotch" to facilitate manoeuvring. Several 
times it was a matter of touch and go as to whether 
the car would go over the precipice edge or not, 
and there appeared only a millimetre between us 
and death. I will own to feeling devoutly thank- 
ful when we had rounded the last acute corner, 
and were free to enjoy the remainder of an emi- 
nently picturesque descent to Ax-les-Thermes, 
with a gradually improving road as to width and 
surface alike. A short way above the town, of 



OVER THE COL DE PRADEL. 139 

course, we struck the road from the Col de 
Chioula, at the second of a series of six lacets, the 
remainder of the descent, as I mentioned in 
the preceding chapter, being common to both 
routes. 

I cannot conclude this description of an 
adventurous journey, however, without an earnest 
appeal to all British manufacturers who are in- 
different to the question of steering-lock to change 
their attitude forthwith. Nothing can well be 
more galHng to a tourist than to find himself on 
a car on which he can face any hill, no matter 
how steep, with the utmost confidence and un- 
concern, which romps up mountain roads in 
a way that causes the spectators to stare with 
open-mouthed astonishment, and which never 
gives a moment's trouble so far as concerns 
the engine, but which puts one in a difficulty 
at a "hairpin" corner for want of an inch or 
two of additional movement in the steering — 
a difficulty, moreover, which can be prevented 
with the utmost ease by correct designing ah 
initio, and has, in point of fact, been prevented 
on the majority of existing cars. 

Of quite a different character is the route which 
I have now to describe — namely, a westward run 
from the Col de Marmare to the Col de Port and 
the Col de Porte t. In Chapter X, it maj^ be remem- 
bered, we broke off at the Col de Marmare, in 
order to cross the Col de Chioula to Ax-les-Thermes, 
and thence proceed over the Col de Puymorens. 
We may now imagine ourselves, therefore, as 



140 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

having come straight from Quillan and arrived 
at the junction where the alternatives present 
themselves of descending to Ax-les-Thermes and 
to Luzenac-Garanou respectively ; and on this 
occasion we choose the latter. 

At the very outset a magnificent prospect un- 
folds itself ahead, with totally different views 
from those of the previous ascent of the Col de 
Marmare. The road passes in the first instance 
through a wood, and is narrow, but of good sur- 
face ; and, though a Touring Club de France 
notice-board at the top bears the inscription, 
" Route tres etroite — tournants hrusques — descente, 
rapide,^' the warning errs on the side of caution 
and is of more concern to cyclists than to the 
drivers of cars. In a word, it is a practical road 
throughout, winding down with beautiful gradi- 
ents, and with sweeping curves instead of sharp 
lacets. At first the valley of the Caussou lies at a 
great depth below, but gradually draws nearer and 
nearer, and everywhere are pleasing prospects ; 
possibly, moreover, one may see an eagle sailing 
overhead in stately pride. A ruined castle— the 
Chateau de Lordat — may be noted when nearing 
Luzenac-Garanou, and, suddenly, one may notice 
also an object moving through the air which proves 
to be a trolley running on wires between a distant 
talc mine, on a neighbouring hill, and a factory 
in the valley. These aerial transport systems, I 
may mention, are fairly common in the Pyrenees, 
and are quite interesting to watch. As Luzenac 
has an altitude of 1,926 feet, and that of the Col 



THE COL DE PORT. 141 

de Marmare is 4,461 feet, the fall has been one of 
2,535 feet in 15 kilometres. 

At Luzenac the main road coming up from 
Ax-les-Thermes is joined, and is nearly straight 
to Tarascon-sur-Ariege. It continues to descend 
for a time, and there are two caniveaux to be 
encountered, the second of which needs to be 
treated with respect ; in each case, however, a 
notice-board on the roadside gives warning of the 
approaching obstacle. The road is then practically- 
level to Tarascon (1,575 feet), and is shaded by 
a double line of trees, while it is accompanied 
throughout on the right by the river Ariege. 
Tarascon is on the main road from Toulouse to 
Foix and the Col de Puymorens, but for our present 
purpose we turn to the left on leaving the town, 
and may look forward to some very interesting 
climbing. At the first village, Surba, we turn 
to the right, and head for the Col de Port, which 
must neither be confounded with the Col de Portel, 
already described in Chapter X, nor with the Col 
de Portet, which has yet to come. 

The road rises steeply for a time, and then 
descends to the village of Bedeilhac, and continues 
to fall for several hundred yards beyond. Then 
the ascent begins anew, though slightly, and leads 
to Saurat, a well-shaded town with a very long 
street. A further straight ascent leads to a wood 
of inviting coolness, and the actual climb is entered 
upon. It is fairly steep, and brings the car several 
times on to its second speed. The road itself is 
excellent, and affords a splendid retrospective 



142 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

view of Tarascon, with its curiously shaped Mon- 
tagne de Soudours immediately behind, and several 
greater peaks beyond. Though, as I have said, 
of good quality, the road, I take it, is not a modern 
one, and, though fairly well graded, is not so 
scientifically sinuous as is usual with mountainous 
ascents. At length, however, the wood is left 
behind, and we wind along an " alp," with a 
moderated gradient, and finish up on the third 
speed. The summit has an altitude of 4,098 
feet, and has involved a rise of 2,523 feet in 17J 
kilometres from Tarascon, and of 1,887 feet in 9 J 
kilometres from Saurat. 

The descent from the summit involves a fall 
of 1,965 feet in 13J kilometres to Massat. Almost 
immediately the Hautes Pyrenees are opened up 
to view, with the Maladetta prominent above all. 
As is so frequently the case in the Pyrenees, the 
outlook does not simply command a distant 
prospect of a single line of peaks, however lofty 
or majestic they may be, but presents a series of 
intervening ranges ; in fact there are four tiers in 
succession between the spectator and the last out- 
post on the horizon. The descent is winding but 
not difficult, and the Pyrenees are in view the whole 
time save when the road leads through woods. 
The hamlet of Rioupregan (3,517 feet) is reached in 
five kilometres, beyond which a by-road branches 
off on the right to Foix. It is enjoyable running 
all the way down to Massat, with easy windings 
and glorious views. Just before the little town 
is entered we cross the River Arac, which accom- 



THE COL DE PORT. 145 

panies the road until it meets the Salat 15 kilo- 
metres farther on. Beyond Massat there is a 
fine descent through a gorge, and thenceforward 
the road runs gently downhill through well- 
wooded country for several miles. 

At the point where the Arac joins the Salat, 
by the Pont de Kercabanac, a road leads on the 
left in 33 kilometres to Aulus, a picturesque 
thermal resort, and is worth taking if time per- 
mits, though it involves the retracing of one's 
wheel-tracks ; eventually, however, the present 
rough road from Aulus to Vicdessos will be im- 
proved, and will thus form a through route to 
Tarascon as an alternative to the Col de 
Port. 

Twelve kilometres of nearly level running from 
the Pont de Kercabanac brings us to St. Girons, 
passing meanwhile the tunnel which has been 
bored for the new trans-Pyrenean railway to 
Saragossa. St. Girons is a town of some 6,000 
inhabitants, situated in a pleasant valley, and the 
best place for a halt on the route now under con- 
sideration. Here we turn to the left and proceed 
for 12 kilometres along a very dusty road towards 
Castillon, with a tramway on the left. Before 
reaching the latter town we turn sharply to the 
right for St. Lary, and with great relief, for the 
journey is uncomfortable in the extreme in such 
a summer as that of 1911. We may now look 
forward, however, to a very enjoyable run over 
the Col de Portet, the Col de Buret, and the Col 
des Ares. 

L 



146 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

The road to St. Lary runs in 12 kilometres, 
with several undulations, along the valley of the 
Bouigane, passing numerous villages in quick 
succession. At St. Lary we turn sharply to the 
right past the church, and begin a steep winding 
ascent through wooded banks, which leads in five 
kilometres to Portet d'Aspet, a village which 
nestles at the bottom of a valley in the midst of 
trees. Here the road seems to be entering a 
cul-de-sac, but emerges into the open. A sudden 
turn to the right follows, and the road ascends 
very steeply through a well-wooded ravine to the 
summit of the Col de Portet (3,524 feet), with four 
" hairpin " corners, the last of which is acute. At 
the summit there is a recently erected snow shelter, 
and at the time of my crossing a gang of labourers 
were at work widening the road. 

The descent is steep, but not difficult. For the 
most part the road leads through a fine ravine. 
At a fork we keep to the right. After a time the 
road ascends for a space, but the descent is then 
resumed. Beautiful cattle are encountered in 
the woods. Beyond these the road is bordered 
with wonderful grassy slopes, alternating with 
wooded hillsides. A short steep rise follows, 
and then one descends to Buret, where a sharp 
turn to the left must be made instead of proceed- 
ing straight forward to St. Gaudens. A series of 
ever-changing views, with wooded hills towering 
to a great height, have made the descent of this 
pass a very enjoyable one, although the road itself 
is not first-class. Probably, however, it will be 



THE COL DES ARES. 147 

improved throughout, and, in any case, it rewards 
the explorer of cross-country routes. 

When one has turned off the road to St. 
Gaudens after descending the Col de Portet, one 
is faced by a straight steep rise through a wood. 
The road is of first- class surface, and in a very 
short time the car is at the summit of the Col de 
Buret. A fine sporting run follows to the Col des 
Ares, alternately known as the Col de las Ares. 
The road is excellent, and the gradient of a type 
which allows one to ascend at a rate of from 
twenty to thirty miles an hour. For the whole 
way to the summit the road is pleasantly shaded 
by trees. 

The descent is magnificent, affording as it 
does glorious vistas of high mountains on the 
horizon, while in the middle distance there are 
picturesque views of rolling hills and red-roofed 
villages in the valley on the right. Lest any 
misconception should arise as to the quality of 
the going itself, which is excellent, I may explain 
that my illustration is from a photograph actually 
taken from the Col des Ares road itself, and the 
white road which is seen in the foreground is 
only a local track in the valley, and much rougher 
accordingly. After passing through Antichan, 
and winding round to Frontignan, one enjoys a 
further glorious descent to Fronsac, during which 
a splendid vista is obtained of the snow-capped 
peaks of the Cirque de Venasque beyond Luchon. 
At the next village, Chaum, the option is afforded 
of continuing straight forward to St. Beat, or of 

L 2 



148 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

turning to the right and crossing the Garonne, and 
then turning sharp to the left and so following the 
main road to Bagneres-de-Luchon. This road 
has already been described in Chapter III, as also 
the interesting run that is available from St. Beat 
over the frontier to Viella in Spain. 

I may add that the run from St. Girons to St. 
Beat is a typical example of the pleasurable 
travelling of which the rail traveller has no 
inkling, and which even the road tourist will 
miss if he trusts to ordinary guide-books. I have 
twice crossed the Gol de Portet, Gol de Buret, and 
the Col des Ares series, and enjoyed the journey 
even more the second time than the first ; yet 
" Baedeker " does not mention any of the three 
passes, and " Conty " ignores the Col de Buret 
and the Col des Ares ; each of these guides alike, 
however, mentions the Col d'Ares, which is only 
a mule-path near Prats-de-MoUo, on the extreme 
east. Even the usually excellent " Guide Joanne " 
has a single line reference only to the Col des 
Ares route to St. Beat. 



ITINERARY. 

The Cols de Pradel, de Marmare, de Port, 
DE Portet, de Buret, and des Ares. 

Intermediate Progressive 

Place. Altitvde. Distances. Totals. 

{Feet.) (Kils.) (Kils.) 

Axat - - - — — — 

Fork - - - _ 1 1 

Gailla - - ^ _ 6 7 

Majsa - - - — 1| 8| 




A CHARACTERISTIC VIEW FROM THE LITTLE-KNOWN COL DES ARES. 



OVER THE COL DE PRADEL. 



149 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




{Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


Joucou - - - 


— 


5i 


14 


Belfort - 


— 


H 


181 


Niort - - - 


2,625 


5 


23| 


Merial - 


3,281 


3 


261 


La Fajolle 


3,455 


2 


28* 


Col de Pradel - 


5,512 


9 


37| 


Forge of Ascou 


— 


7i 


45 


Ascou - - - 


— 


3 


48 


Ax - - 


— 


4 


52 


Col de Marmare 


4,461 


12 


64 


Luzenac 


1,926 


15 


79 


Les Cabannes 


— 


8' 


87 


Tarascon 


1,575 


10 


97 


Surba . - - 


— 


3 


100 


B6deilhac 


— 


2 


102 


Saurat - - - 


2,211 


3 


105 


Col de Part. - 


4,098 


H 


1141 


Rioupregan - 


3,517 


5| 


120 


Fork 


— 


n 


1211 


Massat - 


2,133 


6| 


128 


Biert - 


— 


3 


131 


Pont sur I'Arae 


__ 


1 


132 


Castet - - - 


— 


7 


139 


Pont de Kercabanac 


— 


4 


143 


St. Girons 


— 


12 


155 


Ledar - 


— . 


1 


156 


Aubert - - 


— ■ 


3 


159 


Moulis - - - 


— 


2 


161 


Engomer 


— 


3 


164 


St. Lary 


— 


16 


180 


Portet d'Aspet 


— 


4 


184 


Col de Portet - 


3,524 


1 


185 


Col de Buret - 


— 


12 


197 


Col des Ares - 


— 


11 


208 


Antichan 


— 


4 


212 


Frontignan 


— 


2 


214 


Fronsac - 


— 


2* 


216| 


Chaum - - - 


— 


2* 


219 


St. Beat - 


— 


4 


223 



CHAPTER XIL 

A VISIT TO MAS D*AZIL — THE COLS D*EL 
BOUICH, DE PY, D*EL TEIL, AND DE 
BABOURADE. 

WE have now dealt with all the passes of 
appreciable height in the Eastern Pyre- 
nees ; but there is still some interesting 
cross-country running to be had in practically 
the same latitude as the roads which we have 
been considering between Quillan and St. Beat, 
but slightly farther north. The itinerary which 
I now propose to describe, therefore, embraces 
a visit to each of three show-places of the Pyrenees 
— namely, St. Bertrand-de-Comminges, the grotto 
of Mas d'Azil, and the Chateau de Foix ; the 
road journey also includes the minor Cols of d'El 
Bouich, de Py, d'El Teil, and de Babourade, or 
Puivert. 

Either from Luchon or St. Beat we will assume 
the tourist to have reached the Pont de Chaum. 
The road along the left bank of the Garonne must 
then be followed in the direction of Montrejeau. 
At the little town of Loures-Barousse, however, 
which is pleasantly situated at an altitude of 
1,493 feet, the main road must be left and a 
by-road taken, which leads in four kilometres to 
St. Bertrand-de-Comminges. The place is worth 








THE GROTTO OF MAS D'AZIL, FROM THE ST. GIRONS SIDE. 



A VISIT TO MAS D'AZIL. 151 

visiting not merely by reason of its picturesque 
situation, but also from the very interesting 
character of its cathedral. As is only natural to 
expect from a mountainous district, the Pjnrenees 
cannot boast a wealth of historic buildings other 
than the chateaux and the fortifications of Car- 
cassonne, Mont-Louis, and Villefranche-de-Conflent. 
St. Bertrand-de-Comminges, however, is an ex- 
ception to the rule. The little town stands at 
the summit of an isolated rock, at an altitude of 
1,690 feet, with the cathedral itself towering above 
the surrounding houses. Not only is the sight 
peculiarly picturesque as viewed from below, 
but it commands a fine prospect of the valley of 
the Garonne. As for the cathedral of Notre- 
Dame, it is the finest in the whole of the Pj^-enees. 
I do not propose to enter into a detailed descrip- 
tion of its history or attractions, as they are fully 
set forth in the various guide-books ; suffice it to 
say, however, that the cathedral takes its name 
from the thirteenth-century Bishop Bertrand, 
who afterwards became Pope Clement V, and 
is chiefly remarkable for its wonderfully rich 
examples of carved woodwork, particularly in its 
sixty-eight stalls. Except at the times when 
annual pilgrimages are held the little town is 
almost deserted, and practically exists on the 
sale of souvenirs to visitors. The active life of 
the locality is centred in the more modern buildings 
of Plan, at the base of the rock. 

The main road may be rejoined just below 
Labroqu^re, and three kilometres beyond this 



152 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

village a turn to the right may be made instead of 
continuing to Montrejeau. The road is good, but 
rather more highly crowned than the average French 
highway. Though not remarkable for picturesque- 
ness in its immediate environment, it affords fine 
prospects on the right, extending as far as the 
snow peaks behind Luchon. St. Gaudens, which 
is reached in 12 kilometres from the junction, 
is a town of 7,000 inhabitants, and stands at a 
height of 1,325 feet on a plateau overlooking the 
plain of the Garonne, with fine prospects of the 
Central Pyrenees. The town is sufficiently up 
to date to have an aviation ground, and, at the 
time of my passing in September, was ablaze with 
bunting, as a flying meeting was in progress. 
There is a spacious square with some good shops, 
but it is obvious, from the type of wares displayed 
therein, that few English people ever pass this 
way. 

The main road from St. Gaudens to Toulouse 
may now be followed for some 16 kilometres. It 
ascends for a time, and then descends to the level 
of the valley again, the chain of the Pyrenees 
being kept in view the whole way. At the village 
of Lestelle, however, one may avoid going on to the 
junction at St. Martory by taking a short cut 
across the Garonne to Montsaunes, where there 
is a remarkable twelfth-century church with a 
single nave. Avoiding the branch road on the 
left to Salies-du-Salat, a thermal resort, we pro- 
ceed southwards to St. Girons. At Mane, the 
River Salat is crossed, and the left-hand road 



A VISIT TO MAS D'AZIL. 153 

must be taken at the fork. The next village to 
be encountered bears the curious name of His. 
Several other villages are passed between here and 
St. Girons, and local speed limits are enforced in 
the district to a considerable degree. Not far 
from St. Girons one sees the picturesquely posted 
town of St. Lizier on the left, standing high above 
the valley on a rocky hill. In addition to a 
curious church and an ancient episcopal palace, 
the town is remarkable for its Roman walls. 

It may be market day when passing through 
St. Girons ;- and, though the resultant spectacle 
here, as elsewhere, is more animated and inter- 
esting accordingly, the task of driving is rendered 
difficult for the time being, while the dogs are a 
decided nuisance. They appear to think it their 
duty to head off a car at all costs, and will caper 
about the front wheels until the open road is 
reached and the driver can put on speed. 

As the map will show, there is a direct route to 
Foix from St. Girons, while another road branches 
therefrom to Mas d'Azil and Pamiers. Mas 
d'Azil is naturally taken in the course of a south- 
ward run from Toulouse to the Central Pyrenees, 
but the tourist who is proceeding to Foix may 
either run out to the famous grotto and return 
to the junction at Lescure, or omit the road via 
La Bastide and continue to Foix from Mas d'Azil. 
Taking the former alternative first, however, 
I may say that there is not much which calls for 
description on the road itself. Nevertheless it 
affords pleasant running, and is bordered in places 



154 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

with apple orchards, which are entirely unfenced 
and are a standing tribute to the honesty of the 
peasants. The road follows the River Arixe nearly 
all the way. 

The grotto of Mas d' Azil itself is an undoubted 
curiosity, although it does not appeal, perhaps, 
to those who have viewed the Peak caverns of 
Derbyshire as it would to others who have not 
witnessed anything of the kind ; at the same time 
it is well worthy of a visit. Where it chiefly 
differs from other grottos is in the fact that a 
carriage road goes right through it from end to 
end, and from entrance to exit it has a length of 
1,345 feet. Whereas one entrance or exit, accord- 
ing to the direction from which the grotto is 
approached, is lofty and spacious, the other is 
comparatively low, and to the driver of a vehicle 
the passage through the grotto is the more im- 
pressive if the journey is made from the northern 
end ; that is to say, from the town of Mas d'Azil 
itself. If time permits, the car may be left for a 
while in order to explore a subsidiary grotto and 
lateral passages by torchlight ; one is warned 
in advance, however, that the process is not 
unattended with risk. 

The little town of Mas d'Azil, which has rather 
over 2,000 inhabitants, is worthy of passing 
mention, if for no other reason than the fact that 
the hotel-keepers here do not make a practice of 
exploiting the traveller, though a show-place is 
close at hand. The experience of our own party 
in this connection may be usefully quoted. We 



A VISIT TO MAS D'AZIL. 155 

had approached Mas d'Azil from the north, and 
ended the day's journey at the Httle Hotel Savig- 
nac. We were served with an exceedingly good 
dinner, and accommodated with rooms which were 
quite respectable for a small place ; but our bill 
next day for dinner, bed, breakfast, garage, and 
aperitifs before dinner, as we had arrived early, 
amounted to the colossal sum of 26 francs 
for four people ! It would be interesting to 
know where an experience of this kind could be 
paralleled in the British Isles. One might find, 
of course, places off the beaten track where 
moderate charges would be made ; but one would 
not expect to be served, as a matter of course, with 
a dinner of the type with which we were regaled 
at Mas d'Azil. There was nothing inferior about 
it in any single particular, or we should certainly 
have noticed the fact, for we were quite unaware 
that we were going to be charged in so moderate 
a fashion. All that I remember is that there were 
several courses of well-cooked food, including 
a dish of ecrevisses, with dessert, coffee, and, of 
course, vin compris. 

It remains now to describe the alternative 
route from the junction at Lescure to Foix, and 
on to Puivert. The road is a good one, and at 
a sufficiently low level to be practicable all the 
year round, and affords distant views of the 
Pjo-enees all the way to Foix. Beyond Rimont, 
where there is a ruined castle, the road crosses 
a col which is not deemed worthy of a name 
on the Ordnance map ; nevertheless it is an 



156 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

obvious watershed. At the next village, Gastelnau- 
Durban, are the ruins of another chateau. Here 
an old road goes o£E to the right, but we veer to 
the left, and ere long reach the town of LaBastide- 
de-Serou. After passing the village of Cadarcet, 
the road rises to the Col d'El Bouich by an easy 
gradient. Though the summit is only 1,965 feet 
high, it is a magnificent view-point, while the 
descent to Foix is highly picturesque. A bend in 
the road a short distance from Foix suddenly 
brings the valley in which it is centred into view, 
with a striking vista of the famous castle perched 
on an isolated rock. It is true that it looks less 
striking on a day when the valley is filled with 
summer haze than would be the case in a clear 
atmosphere ; but under almost any conditions 
the scene from the road is sufficiently memorable. 
For the history of this castle, which was besieged 
by Simon de Montfort, I must refer the reader 
to the guide-books ; but I may mention that 
a particularly full and interesting description 
thereof may be found in Mr. Francis Miltoun's 
excellent work entitled "Castles and Chateaux 
of Old Navarre." 

Careful note must be taken of the correct way 
out of Foix, in order to find the road to Lavelanet 
and Puivert. The River Ariege must be crossed, 
and, after a turn to the left beyond the bridge, 
the first turn to the right must be taken. Then 
one rises over the Col de Py, and all the way to 
Lavelanet the road is bordered by the Plantaurel 
mountains. On the left are crenellated rocks, 



THE COL D'EL TEIL. 157 

while on the right a succession of wooded slopes 
offers a curious contrast. For a time the soil is 
of a reddish-brown hue, but later on presents 
variegated colourings. The road undulates, with 
an easy descent to the pretty little town of 
Lavelanet (1,726 feet), where yet another chateau 
may be observed — that of Castelsarrasin. In spite 
of its being a lowland route, the journey has been 
characterised throughout by no small degree of 
variety in the mountain prospects which it unfolds. 
From Lavelanet the road again rises for a time, 
and then descends to the valley of the Hers. Beyond 
Belesta, charmingly situated in an environment 
of mountains and forests, the road becomes very 
bad for a time, the cause being the old familiar 
one in the Pyrenees — namely, the presence of 
saw-mills, and their inseparable concomitants of 
timber-waggons. It is really remarkable that the 
various district authorities should permit this 
wholesale destruction of their highways by one 
particular type of vehicle, and the more so from 
the fact that heavy traffic in France, as a rule, is 
less destructive than in England by reason of the 
use in many places of carts with exceedingly 
large wheels. Eventually, however, the road 
begins to improve, and the Col d'ElTeil (1,952 feet) 
is crossed, with an easy gradient and good surface. 
The summit overlooks a broad, deep valley, with 
slopes of red earth intermingled with lichen. The 
Gol de Babourade, also known as the Gol de 
Puivert (2,116 feet), quickly follows, and, like its 
immediate predecessor, it commands an extensive 



158 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

view. It descends in windings to the town of 
Puivert, and affords midway a surprise view of a 
chateau which is seen to magnificent advantage 
from the hill. Like that of Foix, this castle 
was once besieged by Simon de Montfort. From 
Puivert one has the option of proceeding to Quillan 
by a road which effects a junction with the Col de 
Portel, or of turning northwards through Chalabre 
to Carcassonne or Toulouse. 





ITINERARIES. 


Beat to St. 


Bertrand-de^Comminges and 


THE 


Mas d'Azil. 






Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 




Altitude. Distances. Totals. 
{Feet.) (Kits.) {Kils.) 


St. Beat 


- 


— < — — 


Pont de Chaum 


- 


— 4 4 


Estenos - 


- 


- n 5j 


Salechan 


- 


- i-^ H 


Bagiry - 


- 


— 2| 8h 


Bertren - 


- 


— 3| 111 


Loures - 


- 


1,493 3| 141 


Valcabrere 


- 


- 2| 17 


St. Bertrand-de- 






Comminges - 


- 


1,690 \\ 18| 


Labroquere - 


- 


— 3 2U 


Fork - 


- 


- 2J 24^ 


St. Gaudens - 


- 


1,325 12 36 


Gaudines 


- 


— 9 45 


Beauchalot 


- 


— 3 48 


Lestelle - 


- 


— 4 52 


Montsaunes - 


- 


- 2i 54i 


Mane 


- 


— 3 mi 


Mauvezin 


- 


— 8 65| 


Caumont 


- 


— n\ 73 


St. Girons 


- 


1,283 8 81 


Leseure - 


- 


— 9 90 



FOUR EASTERN COLS. 



159 



Intermediate Progressive 



Place. 




Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 






(Feet.) 


{Kits.) 


{KUs.) 


Clermont 


- 


— 


8 


98 


Balanga - 


- 


— 


3 


101 


Raynaude 


- 


— 


1 


102 


Grotte du 


Mas 








d'Azil - 


- 


— 


3 


105 


Mas d'Azil 


- 


938 


1 


106 



The Cols d'El Bouich, de Py, d»El Teil, 
and de puivert. 







Intermediate 


Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


St. Girons 


1,283 


— 


— 


Lescure - - - 


— 


9 


9 


Rimont - 


1,722 


4 


13 


Castelnau-Durban - 


— 


5 


18 


La Bastide-de-Serou 


— 


9 


27 


Cadarcet 


— 


6 


33 


Col d'El Bouich 


1,965 


5 


38 


Foix 


— 


6 


44 


Col dePy 


— 


7 


51 


Lavelanet 


1,726 


14 


65 


Belesta - 


— 


8 


73 


Cold'ElTeil - 


1,952 


3i 


76i 


Col de Puivert or 








Babourade - 


2,116 


5| 


82 


Puivert - - - 


1,562 


3 


85 



CHAPTER XIIL 

IN THE BASQUE COUNTRY — THE COLS 
D*OSQUISH, DE RONCEVAUX, DE MAYA, 
AND DE VELATE — BIARRITZ AND ST. 
JEAN^DEXUZ. 

SAVE for a sporting side excursion into the little 
republic of Andorra, with which I have to 
deal in the next chapter, we have now passed 
in review all the carriage-roads of formidable height 
in the P3rrenees. There remains for consideration, 
however, an interesting tract of territory which, 
though less mountainous than anything that we have 
had to consider up to now, is not without attrac- 
tions of its own, and which, as a matter of fact, has 
peculiar claims upon the attention of EngMshmen. 
This is the district of the Basses Pyrenees, famili- 
arly known as the Basque country, and bounded 
on the extreme west by the well-known resort of 
Biarritz. Not only is Biarritz largely visited by 
Englishmen in winter, but the whole country 
immediately to the south is bound up with the 
history of Wellington and the Peninsular War. 
In the entrance tower of St. Andrew's Church, at 
Biarritz, may be seen many slabs recording the 
names of British officers who fell in the battles of 
1813 and 1814 ; and, as one writer has remarked, 
" to this day the mountains and hills throughout 



IN THE BASQUE COUNTRY. 161 

" the district are seared with the vestiges of the 
" entrenchments and redoubts with which Soult 
"sought to oppose Welhngton's advance; the walls 
" of the churches are pitted with bullet marks, and 
" their graveyards are full of memorials to British 
" soldiers." 

Being of relatively low elevation, the roads in 
this district are open all the year round, and are 
of equal interest, therefore, to the summer and 
winter visitor alike. Up to the present English- 
men have been included among the latter only, 
and we speak of Biarritz in just the same way as 
we do of the Riviera — meaning, that is to say, a 
place to which we may flee from British fogs in 
the hope of finding sunshine. The real Biarritz 
season, nevertheless, is a summer one, and in 
August and September the plage is one of the 
gayest sights in Europe, while the town itself is 
a hive of most extraordinary activity. It was 
in the middle of September when I was last there 
myself, and certainly the number of cars passing 
to and fro was more suggestive of a Gordon-Bennett 
Cup or Grand Prix race than anything else to 
which I could compare the daily scene. 

In Chapter VII I described the trans-Pyrenean 
route over the Col du Somport, and ended up at 
Oloron-Ste. -Marie. In order, therefore, to make 
our traverse of the Pyrenees complete from 
extreme east to extreme west we may now de- 
scribe the final link between Oloron-Ste. -Marie and 
Biarritz. The winter visitor usually proceeds 
by way of Pau and Orthez ; but there is nothing 

M 



162 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

to prevent him following the infinitely more 
attractive route by way of Mauleon and St. Jean- 
Pied-de-Port, while to choose anything but the 
latter itinerary in summer would be the height of 
folly. 

Even the summer tourist, however, may be 
led to miss the most picturesque route at the 
very outset, for the local people from whom he 
may seek advice will be sure to tell him either 
to go round by way of Aramits and Tardets, 
or through Prechard-Josbaig and L'Hopital St. 
Blaise. Their standard of value is always that 
of gradients, judging the road, as they do, from 
the view-point of the horse-driver or pedestrian ; 
but, if my touring experiences, extending over 
a couple of decades, have taught me anything 
at all, it is the fact that the seeking of high ground 
is invariably its own reward — always provided 
that there is a practicable road. Now, a glance 
at the map will show that there is a comparatively 
direct route from Oloron-Ste. -Marie to Mauleon, 
against which we ourselves were advised at Oloron- 
Ste. -Marie, while the Taride map marks it as 
" dangerous." As a matter of fact, there is not 
the faintest suspicion of danger at any point, and 
the road itself is quite good. Instead of proceed- 
ing along the plains it crosses ridges, which is what 
the motorist wants, but which is just the very 
thing local knowledge will warn him against. 
The situation is one which has many parallels ; 
and I remember, for example, when seeking out 
the road over the Col du Frene, in the French 




M2 



IN THE BASQUE COUNTRY. 165 

Alps, that it was with the greatest difficulty that 
I could obtain any information from the inhabi- 
tants of Chambery, as all alike wished to divert 
me to one or other of the valley routes on the east 
and west. 

From Oloron-Ste. -Marie, however, one must 
drive due west out of the town, along a direct 
route to Mauleon. The road is somewhat bumpy 
at first, but quite passable, and leads through 
country which is charming. The woodland under- 
growth is almost English in character, and the 
road is actually bordered by hedgerows. It un- 
dulates to Esquiule and Barcus, and all the way 
suggests a most agreeable commingling of an 
English rural landscape, of the best type, with 
mountain prospects. Above Barcus we climb 
a winding hill to a height of 1,335 feet, and from 
the summit may enjoy a broad and mag- 
nificent view of the mountains which we have 
left behind, with rolling and well-wooded valleys 
in the middle distance. Then the road winds 
down to Hoquy, with one short intermediate 
rise, and joins the road from L'Hopital St. Blaise, 
and soon afterwards we are in Mauleon. This 
little cross-country run of 28 kilometres is highly 
typical of the Basses Pjrrenees, and equally of the 
advantages one gains on so many of the lateral 
routes of the Pjnrenees generally, as compared with 
following the conventional main roads at lower 
altitudes. 

Mauleon is a pleasing little town, situated in a 
fertile valley on both sides of the River Saison. 



166 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

It derives its name from the fifteenth-century 
ch§;teau of Mauleon, a corruption of " Mauvais 
Lion," which surmounts a neighbouring hill. 
Care must be exercised to avoid taking the south- 
ward road to Tardets, and it is necessary to ask 
for the rue de la Navarre, and cross over to the 
west bank of the Saison. A good undulating 
road is then entered upon, and leads through the 
villages of Garindein and Ordiarp, whence it rises 
somewhat steeply to Musculdy, and brings the 
car down to its second speed. 

Beyond that village the road continues to 
ascend, with an excellent surface, to the Col 
d'Osquish, Near the summit one obtains a totally 
different outlook, and, when actually at the top, 
a glorious panorama is unfolded, although the 
height of the col is only 1,909 feet. As with the 
case of the previous run from Oloron to Mauleon, 
the Taride map marks the road as " dangerous " ; 
but it is simply childish to ban a good and pictur- 
esque road in this ignorant fashion. The road is 
broad and of firm surface, and one only needs to 
pay attention to the brakes wherever the gradients 
require it. The district generally, it may be added, 
is verdant and smiling, and there need be no 
manner of hesitation about taking this route in 
preference to the well-worn one farther north. 

A long descent follows, and the road then 
undulates to Cibits, and almost immediately after- 
wards strikes the main road from Orthez to St. 
Jean-Pied-de-Port at the village of Larceveau, 
where we turn to the left. After passing through 



THE COL DE RONCEVAUX. 167 

Gamarthe and Lacarre, the road undulates for 
several kilometres, and rises to the large village 
of St. Jean-le-Vieux. From here there is a straight 
run into St. Jean-Pied-de-Port, a fortified town 
of much more importance than its size — for it 
has fewer than 2,000 inhabitants — would lead one 
to suppose. Its citadel and walls were built by 
Deville in 1668, and afterwards modified by Vau- 
ban, the strategic importance of the place being 
due to the fact that it commands the entrance 
to the Col de Roncevaux, which leads directly 
into Spain. As might be imagined from its small 
size, the hotel accommodation of St. Jean-Pied- 
de-Port is not extensive, and, if one happens to 
arrive on market day, there is not much chance 
of obtaining a bed. The town is packed with 
Basque peasants from the surrounding districts, 
and, truth to tell, has a somewhat dismal appear- 
ance in consequence, as the women all wear cos- 
tumes of dull black. The hotel question, by the 
way, is of importance, because there is no other 
town of appreciable size within a considerable 
distance ; at the same time, as is well known, 
even the smallest hotels in France are often 
adequate. In our own case, for example, we 
arrived at St. Jean-Pied-de-Port in the evening, 
and, finding ourselves in the predicament above 
named, we pushed on to St. Etienne-de-Baigorry, 
10 kilometres farther, and found quite passable 
quarters at a little hotel, where the charge for a 
double-bedded room was but two francs, and for 
dinner 2f. 75c. 



168 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

No motoring tourist is ever likely to need to 
cross the Port d'Ibaneta, or Col de Roncevaux, 
into Spain, because in winter he would choose 
lower ground on the west, while in summer he 
would naturally take the fine and lofty highways 
over the Col du Somport or the Col du Pourtalet. 
Nevertheless it is worth while — for the sake of its 
associations, if for no other reason — to run up 
the Pass to Roncevaux and back from St. Jean- 
Pied-de-Port, a journey which involves nothing 
formidable in the way of a climb. The road 
ascends the right bank of the Nive d'Arneguy, 
and passes through several picturesque defiles. 
The French custom-house is at the village of Les 
Pintes, seven kilometres from St. Jean-Pied-de- 
Port, but the actual frontier is encountered at a 
bridge beyond Arneguy, the next village. Here 
the road crosses to the left bank of the river, 
and ascends steeply to Valcarlos, the seat of the 
Spanish customs. 

Still following the course of the Arneguy, the 
road rises in lacets through the Defile de Valcarlos, 
and then runs along the flank of Mont Altobiscar. 
After passing a road-menders' hut one ascends 
between magnificent beeches and rocky slopes to 
the summit, 27 kilometres from St. Jean-Pied- 
de-Port. From the summit (3,468 feet) one can 
proceed in two kilometres to the village of Ronce- 
vaux (Spanish, Roncesvalles), which is situated at 
an altitude of 2,772 feet, in a valley famous for the 
defeat of the rearguard of the army of Charlemagne, 
and the death of his nephew, the Paladin Roland. 



THE COL DE RONCEVAUX. 169 

There is a good deal of the apocryphal, no doubt, 
in the stories of Roland ; but the more recent 
history of the Pass is definite enough. It was 
here that Marshal Soult, in 1813, crossed from 
his base at St. Jean-Pied-de-Port at the head of 
35,000 men and attacked 18,000 English. The 
latter were repulsed to Sorauren, but rallied, and 
fought a decisive battle which ended in the rout 
of the French. The village of Roncesvalles is 
insignificant, save for a fine abbey, with two 
square towers, which is occupied by monks of 
the order of St. Augustine. 

Retracing one's wheel-tracks, one may admire 
anew the far-reaching views from the summit and 
the picturesque descent to St. Jean-Pied-de-Port, 
and from there proceed almost due northwards 
for Bayonne and Biarritz. The road follows the 
windings of the River Mve, at a low altitude almost 
throughout, and below Cambo passes through a 
tunnel known as the Pas de Roland, which, 
according to legendary lore, was made by a kick 
of the Paladin's foot, just as the Breche de Roland 
in the Cirque de Gavarnie is alleged to have been 
cleft by a blow from his sword. Cambo itself is 
a picturesquely situated thermal resort, and is 
associated with the name of M. Esmond Rostand, 
the author of " Cyrano de Bergerac " and 
" Chantecler," who lives there. 

As for the rest of the route, from Cambo to 
Bayonne, the fact may be recalled that it was 
tramped by the Black Prince and his army in 
1367, and there was also an engagement in the 



170 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

neighbourhood between the English under General 
Graham and the French under Marshal Soult in 
1813. Bayonne is a large fortified town, which 
Soult made his winter quarters while Wellington 
was encamped at St. Jean-de-Luz. Within two 
miles of Bayonne there are two Guards' cemeteries, 
which were visited by Queen Victoria in 1899 and 
King Edward in 1907. The present reputation 
of the town, however, is generally associated with 
its fine cathedral. 

It was at Bayonne, by the way, that a hum- 
orous incident occurred in the earlier motoring 
experiences of the King of Spain. Nowadays he 
is so frequently in the district, being very fond 
of staying at S. Sebastian, that his car is every- 
where known ; but on the occasion in question 
he was stopped by a gendarme and requested to 
show his driving licence. " I have not got one," 
replied the King. " Then," rejoined the gen- 
darme, " I shall have to summon you ; your 
name, address, and profession ? " " Alfonso de 
Bourbon, King of Spain, Palace Miramar, S. 
Sebastian," was the reply. Tableau. 

Of Biarritz it may be said, perhaps, that it is 
the most all-the-year-round resort in Europe; 
indeed, there are only two slack months in 
the whole year — namely, June and July. The 
place has grown enormously since I first knew 
it in 1903, but even now, despite the size and 
number of its hotels, it is difficult to obtain a 
bed without arrangement in advance. Precisely 
in what way it came to be an English preserve 



ST. JEAN-DE-LUZ. 171 

in the winter months I am unable to say, but 
prescience in this respect has certainly been 
justified, for the climate is equable and the 
situation of the town is delightful. In the summer, 
of course, though we English might fear to venture 
so far south, save when touring by car, the heat 
is less pronounced than at any other resort in 
the same district, a fact which sufficiently accounts 
for the popularity of Biarritz with the French 
and Spaniards. The summer of 1911, of course, 
was no criterion ; it was virtually insupportable 
everywhere save on mountain tops, but ordinarily 
Biarritz is by no means so far beneath the notice 
of Englishmen, apart from the winter season, as 
they have been disposed to regard it. 

An easy run of 16 kilometres brings us to 
St. Jean-de-Luz, a place which of late has 
attracted considerable attention from the 
English, as is illustrated by the fact that it now 
possesses two golf-courses. Less cosmopolitan 
and much less imposing as to size than Biarritz, 
St. Jean-de-Luz is truly a delightful place for 
a stay, especially from the family point of view. 
The plage is perfect for bathing purposes, and 
the bay is land-locked to so unusual a degree 
as to make St. Jean-de-Luz a haven which is 
quiet and picturesque alike. Nevertheless, it has 
had its stirring moments, and was bombarded 
in 1813 by the British fleet, against which the 
Fort Socoa, which is a prominent object at the 
mouth of the bay, fired its last shot. 

It is at St. Jean-de-Luz, by the way, that the 



172 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Basque game of pelota may be seen to particular 
advantage, for the local playing court is regarded 
by experts as the best of its kind. The game 
is played differently in different districts, side 
walls being sometimes employed as well as end 
walls, but in what is held to be the true game 
the end wall only, as at St. Jean-de-Luz, is 
employed. While staying there in September, 
I was fortunate in seeing pelota played by a 
group of men, every one of whom was a champion. 
Even to one not familiar with the points of the 
game the skill of the performers in handling 
the cestus, or sickle-shaped basket, was marvel- 
lous, while the champion of the world, who may 
be seen in the centre of my photograph, was 
positively panther-like in his agility. At the 
same time he was a consummate artist, and 
brought off many of his strokes with a nice 
regard to dramatic effect. 

A pleasant excursion may be made from either 
Biarritz or St. Jean-de-Luz to the Col de Maya 
(1,975 feet), by a good and pretty road which 
runs between well-wooded hillsides. If inclined 
for a still longer excursion, the tourist may branch 
off at the foot of the Col de Maya route, instead 
of returning to Fontarabie, and cross the Col de 
Velate (2,848 feet) to Pampeluna, and thence 
proceed to S. Sebastian. The surface of the Col 
de Velate road is good, but the gradients are 
occasionally steep, and there are several sharp 
corners ; nevertheless it is regularly traversed 
by public-service motor-cars. 



OLORON TO BIARRITZ. 178 

ITINERARIES. 
The Cols D'osquish and de Roncevaux. 

Intermediate Progressive 



Place. 


Altitvde. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Oloron-Ste.-Marie - 


689 


— 


— 


Esquiule 


— 


9 


9 


Barcus - - - 


— 


6 


15 


Cheraute 


— 


11 


26 


Mauleon 


463 


2 


28 


Musculdy 


— 


8 


36 


Col d'osquish - 


1,909 


6 


42- 


St. Just - 


— 


7 


49 


Larcevaux 


— 


6 


55 


Lacarre - - - 


— 


8 


63 


St. Jean-le-Vieux - 


— 


4 


67 


St. Jean-Pied-de- 








Port - 


551 


4 


71 - 


Les Pintes (French 








Customs) - 


— 


7 


78 


Arneguy 


— 


1 


79 


Valcarlos 


— 


4 


83 


Col de Roncevaux - 


3,468 


15 


98 


Roncevaux 


2,772 


2 


100 



St. Jean-Pied-dE'Port to Biarritz. 

Intermediate Progressive 



Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


[Kils.) 


(Kils.) 


St. Jean-Pied-de- 








Port - 


551 


— 


— 


Vergez - - - 


— 


21 


21 


Loi^tiossoa 


— 


7 


28 


Pas de Roland 


— 


4 


32 


Cambo - - - 


— 


5 


37 


Ustaritz 


— 


8 


45 


Bayonne 


— 


12 


57 


Biarritz - 


— 


7 


64 



174 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

The Cols de Maya and de Velate. 







Intermediate Progressive 


Place. 


Altitude. 


Distances. 


Totals. 




(Feet.) 


{Kiis.) 


{Kils.) 


Biarritz - 


— 


— 


— 


Bidart - 


— 


7 


7 


Fork 


-^ — 


2 


9 


Montee - 


— 


2 


11 


St. Jean-de-Luz 


— 


5 


16 


Souraide 


— 


23 


39 


Espelette 


— 


H 


424 


Ainhoue - 


— 


3 


45i 


Landibar 


— 


4 


m 


Urdax - 


— 


2 


511 


Col de Maya - 


- 1,975 


4 


65^ 


Maya 


— 


7 


m 


Elvetea - 


— 


3 


65^ 


Elizondo 


— 


2 


67i 


Almandoz 


- 1,404 


17 


84^ 


Col de V elate - 


- 2,848 


1 


85^ 


Venta Quemada 


— 


8 


m 


Venta Arraiz - 


— 


6 


99i 


Olagiie - 


— 


6 


105| 


Ostiz 


— 


5 


llOi 


Sorduren 


— 


7 


117i 


Villanueva 


— 


4 


12l| 


Pampeluna 


- 1,378 


4 


125| 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE HIGHEST ROAD IN THE PYRENEES- 
THE PAS DE LAS CASAS AND THE COL DE 
FRAY.MIQUEL— A PRIMITIVE REPUBLIC. 

N a remote corner of the Pyrenees, just west 
of the Col de Puymorens, Ues the little 
republic of Andorra, the smallest and 
quaintest of European states. There is no spot 
within touch of civilisation which has been less 
influenced by modern developments ; and to all 
intents and purposes it is a world unto itself. 
Railways it knows not, and until recently it has 
been virtually without roads, communication 
with France or Spain having been effected by 
mule-paths only. Now, however, a carriage- 
road has been constructed between L'Hospitalet, 
at the foot of the Col de Puymorens, and Soldeu, 
and eventually it will be carried through the 
heart of the little republic to the capital to^n of 
Andorra-la- Vella itself, if one can apply the 
word capital to a place of 500 mhabitants. 

This road was only opened in August, 1911, 
and to my regret I was unaware of the fact when 
I passed through L'Hospitalet in September. 
Quite by accident, however, I discovered later 
that the new road had been completed, and als^ 
that it had been traversed ?by two cars from 



176 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

Ax-les-Thermes. Although, in the absence of heavy 
traffic, it will take some time to settle down, it 
should be well worth the tourist's while to ascend 
it as a sporting experience, opening up as it 
does a practically virgin tract of territory, with 
unique claims to notice by reason of the quaint 
constitution of its government, and more par- 
ticularly from the fact that the road is the highest 
in the Pyrenees. It ascends, indeed, to an 
altitude of no less than 8,022 feet on the Col de 
Fray-Miquel, and thus eclipses by a considerable 
margin the Col de Tourmalet itself, which has 
hitherto held pride of place, and still remains, of 
course, the loftiest of the through routes. 

The government system of Andorra is sim- 
plicity itself, but it has nevertheless held good 
for no less than 600 years. For the control of 
the little republic, which covers 27 kilometres 
from north to south and 29 kilometres from east 
to west, the entire population numbering only 
5,210 persons, there is a general council of twenty- 
four members, who are elected every four years. 
Curiously enough, the latest feature of English 
political life — payment of members — has long 
been an accomplished fact in Andorra, and the 
councillors receive annually the colossal sum of 
10 pesetas ! They elect among themselves a 
Syndic-General, who receives the munificent salary 
of 80 pesetas. 

There are also two provosts, one nominated 
by the French Government and the other by the 
Bishop of Urgel, and these provosts exercise such 



THE HIGHEST ROAD IN THE PYRENEES. 177 

judicial functions as are necessary in a community 
of such simple life ; in actual practice it is only 
found desirable to hold two assizes a year. The 
provosts are also the titular heads of the militia, 
which is ipso facto recruited from the heads of 
families, each of whom has to carry a gun ; if 
need be, however, all the male inhabitants may 
be called upon to serve as soldiers. The con- 
stitution dates back to a treaty made in 1278 
between the Bishop of Urgel and the Comte de 
Foix, but the only suzerainty which France now 
holds over Andorra is that of exacting an annual 
payment of 960 francs, while the Bishop of Urgel 
receives 450 francs. Crime is almost unknown 
in the community, and there are no police ; 
moreover, there are no taxes on either commerce 
or industry, and very few customs dues. When 
the road recently carried as far as Soldeu is 
continued to the capital the tide of travel will 
probably have the effect of removing, to some 
extent, the extreme primitiveness of the district ; 
but matters proceed so leisurely in this part of 
Europe that not only will a considerable time 
elapse before the remainder of the road is built, 
but even then it may take generations to secure 
a change in the existing feudal system. Alto- 
gether, therefore, the republic is an interesting 
field of study for the tourist, and is quite without 
a parallel ; for, though the little Italian principality 
of San Marino is very much smaller in area, its 
population is nearly double that of Andorra, 
while that of Monaco is larger still. 

N 



178 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

As I have said, I have no personal experience 
of the new road, but I have placed myself in 
communication with Dr. F. Gomma, who was 
one of the motorists mentioned above to make 
the first automobile journey over the Col de 
Fray-Miquel. Dr. Gomma, a physician of Ax- 
les-Thermes, is the local delegate of the Touring 
Club de France, and shortly after his trip con- 
tributed a brief narrative thereof to a Pyrenean 
journal, from which I may extract the following 
observations on the route : — 

" On October 19th, 1910, the administration 
*' of the Fonts et Chaussees of the Pyrenees-Orien- 
" tales took over a road destined to unite France 
" with the valleys of Andorra. This road starts from 
'' the route nationaWNo. 20 of Paris, at a point seven 
"kilometres from I'Hospitalet, in the neighbour- 
** hood of la Llatte, crosses one or two little ravines, 
"traverses the slope formerly used by waggons 
"conveying iron from Puymorens, and, after five 
" kilometres 900 metres, with a maximum gradient 
"of 1 in 14, joins the Pas de las Casas (6,808 feet). 
" Here an international bridge across the Ari^ge, 
"not far from its source, in the centre of the 
"picturesque Cirque de Font-Negre, marks the 
"boundary line between France and Andorra. 

" The road runs into Andorran territory for 
"60 to 80 metres, and 125 metres further on 
" another road begins. Built about ten years 
" ago, and half destroyed by violent storms and 
" rough winters, it fell into disrepair through 
" lack of use pending the carrying out of the 



THE HIGHEST ROAD IN THE PYRENEES. 179 

long-promised French portion of the road. On 
the completion of this the Syndic- General of 
the Vallees d' Andorra, M. Moles, proceeded to 
join up the two roads. This has only recently 
been effected, and a stretch of uninterrupted 
road, 20 kilometres in length, crossing the 
Pas de las Casas and the Col de Fray-Miquel 
(8,022 feet), has put into actual communication 
the Departement des Pyrenees-Orientales with 
Soldeu, the first Andorran village in the high 
valley of the Valira (6,102 feet). In October, 
1910, M. Duran, the contractor at Fontpedrouse 
who had built this road in three summer seasons, 
kindly allowed me to foresee that on the 19tli 
of that month some 80 metres of the Andorran 
route would be opened, and we had the pleasure 
of driving over it the first two motor-cars to 
press the soil of the little republic — a sporting 
drive, not perilous, and of no great interest, but 
one which gave me the idea of something more 
being done. 

" On August 13th, 1911, at half -past four in 
the morning, in the company of Brida, the chief 
road-mender of Carol, and that of M. Builles, 
a photographer of Ax, we took the Andorra 
road at Llatte. At half-past six we arrived 
at Soldeu, to the great astonishment of the 
population of the little village of scarcely ten 
houses. I will not inflict upon the reader the 
story of the journey, or enlarge upon the inci- 
dents ; I will not give him a description of 
the picturesque views ; I will not fatigue him 

N 2 



180 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

"by the transcendent considerations of political 
" economy, which he is destined to discover, if he 
" does not already know them — the many advan- 
" tages of lines of communication, etc., etc. In 
"a few rapid and practical words I will confine 
" myself to sundry useful points. 

" Is the country worth visiting ? Everyone 
" to his own opinion. I shall often return there, 
" for / found it superb / Possibly this may not 
" be your opinion. In any case I am not going 
" to give you a description. A country cannot be 
" described ; each individual sees and admires 
" according to his own taste. I will mention the 
" two following special view-points only : — At 
" the Pas de las Casas, the Cirque de Font-Negre, 
" at the bottom of which, from a lacet, one sees a 
" corner of the little blue sheet of the Font-Negre 
" lake, from which the Ariege flows ; and, on the 
" Andorran side of the col^ the twin Cirque dels 
" Pessons, which shelters, like the Cirque de Font- 
" Negre, several lakes, in which rises one of the 
" two rivers of Andorra — la Valira del Orien. 

" In the neighbourhood of the summit we met 
" the old carrier who daily conveys the mails to 
" Porte, perched on a superbly harnessed mule. 
" One could scarcely believe one's eyes ! It 
" appears that on the hot days in summer the poor 
" old man likes, in order to travel more at his 
" ease and more happily, to tuck his trousers into 
" his letter-sack, and he does not put them on 
" again until he nears the village. How he must 
" have cursed us ! In future he will be obliged 



■ 


i ,'., 


H 


/ ; 


1 





THE HIGHEST ROAD IN THE PYRENEES. 181 

" to be more correct. At Soldeu all the population 
" wanted to come and see the carriage without 
" horses. All the population — that is not many — 
" for there are only thirty-five to forty inhabitants, 
" and we had already met fifteen or twenty of 
" them at work in the fields alongside the road. 
" The children, it appears, so a good old nurse 
" told us, do not need to have their ears pulled to 
" make them rise early, and certainly her own 
" curiosity ceded nothing to that of her charges. 

" In the evening, after our departure, the news 
" spread to Canillo that an automobile had 
" reached Soldeu, and the fifty to sixty inhabitants 
" of this ' big ' parish came up to Soldeu to 
" reassure themselves. I came to realise that the 
" feat was of more importance than I had pre- 
" viously accounted it. In any case, looking at 
'' the achievement from the tourist's point of view, 
'- 1 am happy to be able to say to those who are 
" tempted to go to Andorra, but who hesitate 
" because of the length of the journey, that from 
" Ax one can go to Soldeu and back in six or eight 
" hours, on condition that one has — (1) a good 
" and not too heavy car ; (2) a prudent chauffeur, 
" and (3) some knowledge of driving among 
"^mountains. Personally, I made this journey 
"■on a D.F.P. four-cylinder car, of 65 mm. by 
"120 mm. bore and stroke, with Claudel car- 
" buretter, Bosch ignition, Michelin tyres, and a 
" wheel-base of 2m. 40c. I took two hours to 
" cover the 20 kilometres ; it could be done more 
" rapidly, but I preferred to be ultra-prudent. 



182 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

" Nevertheless one should always allow at least 
" an hour. From the route nationale to the Pas 
" de las Casas the road is hard and firm, but in 
" places, totalling about a kilometre, some unrolled 
" stretches of granite, with sharp edges, put our 
" tyres to a rude test. 

" From the Pas de las Casas to the Col de Fray- 
" Miquel one rises from 6,808 feet to 8,022 feet in 
" 4 kilometres 800 metres. The worst gradients 
" do not exceed from 10 to 12 per cent. The road 
"is covered with lumps of friable slate, laid flat, 
" and not hard on the tyres. The corners are 
" well engineered ; cars of long wheel-base would 
" have to manoeuvre once or twice only. It 
" would be wise, on nearing them, to make 
" absolutely sure of the brakes, and to remain on 
"the first speed on going up and on the reverse 
" in descending, in order to be able to fall back 
" on the motor in case of delicate manoeuvres or 
*' failures of the brakes. 

" The same observations apply to the descent 
" to Soldeu, 9 kilometres 900 metres from the col, 
" which represents a fall to 6,102 feet. From the 
' ' foot of the col to Soldeu the road is narrow, but 
" it is firm and well-cambered throughout, with a 
" slatey surface and a descent in lacets. Certain 
" parts of the road which were not, and could not 
" be, sufficiently protected against the torrential 
" rains and the violence of the storms, never allow 
" one to go too fast for fear of finding one's self 
" faced by a very deep rut or hump. The nature 
" of the soil renders skidding very easy, so that it 



THE HIGHEST ROAD IN THE PYRENEES. 188 

is as well to have very good anti-skids, and, in 
case of necessity, a thick rope which can be 
passed round the back wheels in order to get 
through snow. Do not forget a bucket, if one 
is likely to overheat ; water is never lacking, and 
one cannot go two kilometres without finding a 
rivulet. 

" And now, to my motoring brothers, ' Bon 
voyage,' as far as Soldeu. As to Andorra-la- 
Vella, the capital of this charming country, it 
is not at the moment accessible except by 
aeroplane ! " 
I need hardly point out that, in his time 

allowances, Dr. Gomma speaks from the point of 

view of the driver of a small car. 



ITINERARY. 


'HE Cols de las 


Casas and Fray-Miquel. 


Plate. 

Ax-les-Thermes 
L'Hospitalet - 
Pas de las Casas 
Col de Fray-Miquel 
Soldeu - - - 


Intermediate Progressive 
Altitude. Distances. Totals. 
{Feet.) {Kils.) {Kils.) 
2,356 — — 
4,711 18 18 
6,808 6 24 
8,022 5 29 
6,102 10 39 



CHAPTER XV. 
HOW TO REACH THE PYRENEES. 

AS the Pyrenees are situate at the southern- 
most limit of French territory, it is 
obvious that anyone who has the time 
may do a considerable amount of touring on the 
way thither, or when returning northwards. It 
is in no sense the purpose of this book, however, 
to provide a touring guide to the whole of France ; 
but one or two itineraries may usefully be 
appended for the benefit of those who propose to 
drive to the P3rrenees by road. The alternatives, 
of course, are many, and anyone already familiar 
with some portions of northern or central France 
may introduce considerable variations of his own. 
The chief thing, however, which the average 
tourist will require to know is the best available 
route if he proposes to begin his exploration of 
the Pjn^enean ranges from the west, and equally 
the best and most desirable if he decides to make 
a start at the eastern end. The choice of these 
alternatives must be left to the individual traveller, 
as there is no paramount advantage, I think, 
attaching to beginning on the west and finishing 
on the east, or vice versa. 

Dealing first with the western approach, I may 
say that the selection af an itinerary must be 



HOW TO REACH THE PYRENEES. 185 

dependent upon whether the tourist is ah-eady 
familiar with the attractions of Touraine. If 
he has not visited the famous chateaux which 
are clustered within the neighbourhood of Tours, 
he may usefully follow the classic highway to 
Bordeaux, and thence skirt the Landes country 
to Biarritz, as follows : — 



Place. 



Paris - 

Etampes 

Orleans 

Blois 

Tours - 

Chatellerault 

Poitiers 

Ruffec 

Angouleme - 

Barbezieux - 

Bordeaux 

Bazas - 

Mont-de-Marsan 

Bayonne - 

Biarritz 



Intermediate 


Progressive 


Distances. 


Totals. 


(Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


44 


44 


67 


111 


56 


167 


59 


226 


71 


297 


33 


330 


66 


396 


42 


438 


35 


473 


82 


555 


60 


615 


69 


684 


105 


789 


7 


796 



On the other hand, if the chateaux country 
is already familiar ground, the following itinerary 
may be r'ecommended : — 



Place. 



Paris - 

Etampes 

Orleans 

Vierzon-Ville 

Vatan 

Cliateauroux 

Limoges 

Perigueux 



Intermediate 


Progressive 


Distances. 


Totals. 


{Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


44 


44 


67 


111 


81 


192 


26 


218 


30 


248 


123 


371 


. 98 


469 



186 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 



Place. 

Bergerac 
Marmande - 


Intermediate 
Distances. 
(Kils.) 
54 
59 


Progressive 
Totals. 
[Kils.) 
523 
582 


Mont-de-Marsan - 


96 


678 


Bayonne 

Biarritz _ - . 


- 105 

7 


783 
790 



I have said nothing as to the routes to Paris 
because they are so numerous, and it is a matter 
of individual option as to whether Calais, Boulogne, 
or Dieppe be chosen as the port of landing ; but, 
in order to enable the reader to gauge his total 
distance, I may mention that from Calais to 
Paris is 271 kilometres, from Boulogne to Paris 
238 kilometres, and from Dieppe to Paris 163 
kilometres. 

The approach to the Mediterranean end of 
the Pyrenees can be made in various ways, but 
the following may be recommended as the most 
attractive : — 







Intermediate 


Progressive 




Place. 


Distances. 


Totals. 






{Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


Paris 


- 


— 


— 


Melun - 


- 


40 


40 


Fontainebleau 


- 


15 


55 


Montargis 


- 


47 


102 


Cosne - 


- 


72 


174 


Nevers 


- 


54 


228 


Moulins 


- 


55 


283 


Gannat 


- 


55 


338 


Clermont-Ferrand 


39 


377 


Issoire 


- 


32 


409 


St. Flour 


- 


82 


491 


Mende 


- 


81 


572 


Balsieges 


- 


8 


580 


La Baraque des Gendarmes 


9 


589 


Molines 


- 


10 


599 



Distances. 


Totals. 


{Kils.) 


{Kils.) 


18 


617 


33 


650 


22 


672 


59 


731 


49 


780 


25 


805 


68 


873 



HOW TO REACH THE PYRENEES. 187 

Intermediate Progressive 
Place. 

Ste. Enimie - - - 

Le Rozier . - _ 

Millau 

Lodeve . - . 

Beziers _ - . 

Narbonne - - - 

Perpignan - - - 

This itinerary confers two great advantages. 
In the first place it goes through the picturesque 
district of the Puy de Dome, near Clermont- 
Ferrand ; and, in the second place, it permits 
of a visit being paid to the famous Gorges of 
the Tarn. With the latter object in view the 
tourist must pay particular heed to the details 
of the itinerary from St. Flour to Millau, as the 
Gorges are not on the direct road, and might 
easily be missed. 

In the early portion of this volume I have 
controverted the widespread notion that the 
region of the Pyrenees is one to be visited in 
autumn, winter, or spring, and pointed out that, 
for really comprehensive touring among the 
mountain passes, a visit in the late summer is 
much to be preferred. At the same time I do 
not go so far as to contend that the P3rrenees 
are not worth doing in spring, autumn, or — so 
far as is possible — in winter by those who wish 
to include them as part and parcel of a visit to 
the Riviera. If the Pyrenees, as such, are the 
tourist's objective, they are worth taking seriously, 
and exploring for their own sake in summer ; 



188 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

but I have no wish to dissuade visitors to the 
Riviera from doing what they can in the Pyrenees 
also. Snow is not as heavy there as in the Alpine 
regions, and, by local inquiry as to each particular 
pass, the tourist can find out what is possible 
and what is not. In the excellent " Guide 
Michelin," moreover, there is a useful table 
which affords general indications as to the probable 
periods during which the passes are usually 
blocked with snow. For the benefit of those 
proceeding to or from the Cote d'Azur, before or 
after the Riviera season, I append an itinerary 
as follows : — 

Intermediate Progressive 

Place. Distances. Totals. 

(Kits.) (Kih.) 
Nice ----- — — 

Cannes ... - 30 30 

Fr6ju8 - - - - 36 66 

Brignoles - - - - 63 129 

Aix ----- 55 184 

Avignon - - - - 76 260 

Nimes - - - - 42 302 

Lunel 25 327 

Montpelier - - - - 23 350 

Agde ----- 60 410 

Beziers - - - - 21 431 

Narbonne - - - - 25 456 

Perpignan - - - - 68 524 

There is a shorter route between Montpelier 
and Beziers, but the one by Agde is to be preferred. 




SKETCH-MAP AND CONTOUR OF THE "ROUTE DES PYRi^NllES," 



ll 



CHAPTER XVL 
THE "ROUTE DES PYRENEES.** 

I MUST not conclude this description of the 
" Passes of the Pyrenees " without reference 
to the latest project of the Touring Club 
de France. Following its great scheme for the 
completion of a " Grande Route des Alpes," it 
now aspires to create a " Route des Pyrenees " ; 
in other words, it proposes to link up certain 
points which are at present unconnected by 
road, and so provide an end-to-end mountain 
route, without a break, from the Atlantic to the 
Mediterranean. The several lacunce are indicated 
on the accompanying map. The total length 
of the proposed route is 734 kilometres, of which 
615 kilometres is represented by roads already 
in existence, leaving only 119 kilometres to be 
constructed. 

If we consider the route from west to east, 
the first new section to be made would be from 
Esterencuby, nine kilometres from St. Jean-Pied- 
de-Port, to Larrau, through the valley of the Nive, 
and crossing the Col Burdin-Curucheta (3,609 ft.) ; 
and, after passing through the Forest of Iraty, 
it would cross another col, that of Orgambidesca 
(4,265 feet). From Larrau there already exists 
a continuous route to Ayet, beyond Castillon, 



190 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 

and here a second short section of 12 kilometres 
is proposed in order to cross the Col de la Core 
(4,623 feet). A little farther along a further 
section of six kilometres would pass from Ustou- 
Serac to Aulus, over the Col de Latrape (3,609 
feet). From Aulus the new portion would be 
continued to Saleix, a distance of 17 kilometres, 
over the Port de Saleix (5,925 feet). Finally 
it is proposed to join Vernet-les-Bains with La 
Preste-les-Bains, a distance of 47 kilometres. 

On the one hand, therefore, the proposal may 
be regarded as due in part to a desire to make 
an uninterrupted route along the Pyrenees for 
the sake of continuity alone; and, on the other 
hand, the scheme incidentally embodies practical 
advantages by way of linking up certain well- 
known resorts which are at present merely served 
by cul'de-sac roads, as in the case of Prats-de- 
MoUo, Vernet-les-Bains, and Aulus. 

In due course this project will undoubtedly 
be realised, and meanwhile it will serve the 
purpose of calling the attention to the Pyrenees- 
which they so richly deserve, and will probably 
lead also to the improvement of existing roads 
wherever improvement is required. Eventually 
the car-owner will be able to drive from the 
Mediterranean to the Atlantic, or vice versa, 
without being under the compulsion of making 
detours along the plains merely through lack 
of mountain thoroughfares. At the same time 
he will be perfectly free to make whatever diva- 
gations may be desirable, such as the excursions 



THE ** ROUTE DES PYRENEES." 191 

from Luchon to the Hospice de France and the 
Vallee du Lys, the ascent to Gavarnie, and that 
also to Cauterets. 

It would be an error of judgment, however, 
for the tourist to keep within French territory 
the whole time, as the journey over the Spanish 
frontier by way of the Col du Pourtalet to Jaca, 
returning by way of the Col du Somport, ought 
on no account to be omitted. As will have been 
recognised, moreover, from a perusal of the 
preceding chapters, there is much interesting 
ground to be covered within the neighbourhood 
of Quillan and Ax-les-Thermes, while few visitors 
to the south of France will be disposed to miss 
the opportunity of seeing the famous Cite of 
Carcassonne. 



i-mis. 



INDEX. 



A. 

PAGE 

Able, D6fil6 d" I34 

Accous ----.. 92 

Adast ... - - 75 

Adouxfe, D6fil6 des - - - 134 

-A^de 188 

Agos-Vidalos 75 

A in hone I74 

^, 188 

^et 103 

Almandoz 174 

Am61ie-les-Bains - - - - 119 

Andorra, Eepublic of - - - 160 

Anferan-Oamors - - - - 52 

Angouleme 185 

Antiehan ----._ 149 

Antignac --.-.. 39 
Aragnouet ----.. 46 

Araiaits ------ ig2 

Ares, Ool des - - - - 133, 149 

Argelfes 66, 75 

Arloz 39 

Am6guy I73 

Arras ----.. 75 

Arreau ------ 52 

Arrens - 75 

Arros 91 

Artifes, Baths of .... 33 

Artigoirs ----.. 72 
Asasp ----.. 91 

Ascou ----.. 149 

Aspe Valine d' - - - - - 90 

Aspin, Ool d* 52 

Aubert 39, 149 

Aubisque, Col d' - - - 66, 75 
Aucun - - - - - - ' 75 

Aude, Haute, VaUSe de 1' - - - 99 
Aulus ---... 145 

Auriac --.-.. 94 

Avignon 188 

As-les-Themies - - - 132, 149, 183 
•^at - - - 103, 117, 132, 148 



B, 

Babourade, Col de - - - 150, 159 

Baglry 158 

Bagn6res-de-Bigorre - - - 24, 52 

Balanpa 159 

Balsifeges ----._ 186 

Barbezieux - . . . . 135 

Barcelona ----- 116, 132 

Barcus ------ 173 

Barfeges ------ 25 

Bastide-de-S6rou, La - - - - 159 



^ ^ .„ PAGE 

Bataille, Col de la - - - 104 117 
Bayonne - - - - 173^ 185,' I86 
Bazas ------ 185 

Beauohalot 158 

B^deilhac 149 

Bedous 91 

Belcaire ------ 133 

B61esta - 159 

Belfort ------ 149 

Bellegarde, Fort de - - - - us 

Belvianes ------ 103 

Berduquet, D6fil6 de - - - - 130 

Bergerac 186 

Bertren - 153 

Betpouey - 23 

Beziers 137, 188 

Biamtz - - 160, 173, 174, 185, 186 
Bidart ------ 174 

Biert ------ 149 

Biescas gj 

glois 185 

Bordeaux ------ 135 

Bordferes-Luron 52 

Bosost 39 

Bouich, Col d'EI - - . 150, I59 

Boulou - 131 

„ Bains de 131 

Bourg-Madame - - - - ne, 132 

Brignoles 188 

Brousset, Q-ave de - - - - 80 
Burdin Curucheta, Col - - - 139 
Buret, Col de - - - - 133, 149 



c. 

Cabanes de Thou - - - . 25 

Cabannes, Les 149 

Oadarcet 159 

Cailla ' 148 

Caldares, Gorge de - - - - 82 

Oallong, Foret de - - - - 122 

Cambo I73 

Cam mazes, Les ----- 103 

Campagne-sur-Aude - - - - 103 

Campan - 24 

Camurac ------ 132 

Canfranc ------ 91 

Cannes - 188 

Cantina, La 116 

Carcanet, l?6ret de - - - - 101 

Carcaniferes, Bains de - - 101, 103 

Carcassonne - - - - - 103 

Oasas, Pas de las - - - 175, 183 

Casteillou, Col de - - - 92, 103 

Castelnau-Durban - - - . 159 

o 



194 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 



PAGE 

Castelnaudary - - - - - 97 

Castelsarrasin, Chateau de - - - 157 

Castet 149 

Oastiello 91 

Oau(|ifes de St. Paul - - - - 117 

Caumont ------ 158 

Cauterets 65, 66, 75 

06pie 103 

Oette-Bygun 91 

Ohateaurous ----- 185 

OhateUerault 185 

Chaum 149 

01i6raute 173 

Ohioula, Col de - - - - 118, 132 

Oierp 39 

Clermont ------ 159 

Olennont-Ferraud - - - - 186 

Coca, La - - - - - - 91 

Oorbi^res 93 

Core, Col de la 190 

Cosne 186 

Coudons - 132 

Oouiza 103 

Couret, Col dn 72 

Ouartel de Socotor - - - - 90 

Cur6, Trou du 120 



E. 

Baux-Bonnes ----- 75 

Eaux-Chaudes ----- 90 

Ecluse, L' 131 

Elizando ------ 174 

Elvetea 174 

Bngomer - 149 

Enveitg 132 

Esoaldes, Les ----- 105 

Escarilla, Pont d' - - - - 82 

Bscot 91 

Escouloubre, Bains d' - - - 101 

Espelette 174 

Espiadet ------ 52 

Esquiule 173 

Estagel 117 

Estenos ------ 158 

Bsterre 23 

Etampes ------ 185 

Etsaut 91 

Eyne, Valley ol the - - - - 105 



F. 

Fajolle, La 149 

Eigueras - - - - - -132 

Eoix 159 

Eonderie, La - - - - - « 91 

Eont-Nfegre, Cirque de - - - 178 

Fontainebleau ----- 186 

Eontp6drouse ----- 117 

Eormiguferes ----- 103 

Eos 39 

Erav-Miquel, Col de - - - 175, 183 

Er6]us 188 

Eronsac ------ 149 

Eroutignan . - . - - 149 



G. 

PAGE 

Gabas 90 

Galamus, Gorges de - - - - 117 

GaUego, Kiver 82 

Gannat 186 

Garin ------ '52 

Gaudines ------ 158 

Gavamie, Cirque de - - - 53, 64 

G6dre 64 

Gesse 103 

Gourette ------ 75 

Gripp 24 

Guran 39 

Gurmen(;on ----- 91 



H. 

Harenc, Pont de 1' 
Hilad6re, Pont de la - 
His - 
His - - - - 

H6pital-St. -Blaise, L' 
Hospice de Prance 
Hospitalet, L' - 
Hostal de Molina 
H6teUeries du Lys 
Hoz - - - - 



- 133 

- 65 

- 153 

- 116 

- 162 

- 38 
132, 183 

- 116 



Ibaiieta, Port d' 
Ignaux 

IUe-sur-la-T§t - 
Issoire 



87 



168 

132 
117 
186 



J. 

Jaca -------91 

Joucon ------ 149 

„ D6fil6 de . - - - 134 

Junquera, La - - - - - 131 



Kercabanac, Pont de - 



149 



L. 

Labroqufere - - - - 158 

Lacarre ------ 173 

Landibar ------ 174 

Lanuza ------ 91 

Lapade ------ 38 

Larcevaux ------ 173 

Laruns 75, 90 

Latour-de-Oarol ----- 132 

Latrape, Col de 190 

Lau-Balagnas ----- 75 

Lavelanet ------ 159 

Ledar - - - - - - 149 



INDEX. 



195 



PAGE 
L6s 39 

Lescure 158, 159 

Lestelle 158 

LimaQon, La MontSe du - - - 70 

Limoges 185 

Limoux ----.. 103 

Llagone, La 103 

Llatte, La - - - - - . 178 
Lod^ye --.... 137 
Lordat, Chateau de - - - - 140 
Louliossoa --.-.. 173 
Lourdes - - - - - 66, 75 
Loures -.-... 153 
Luohon - - - - 26, 38-40, 53 

Lunel 188 

I'UZ - - - - 25, 58, 64, 65 

Luzenac ---.-. 149 



M. 

Madame --.-.. 103 

Mane 158 

Maquens ---... 103 
Marignac ----.. 39 
Marmare, Col de - 118, 132, 133, 149 
Marmaude- - - . . . igg 
Marquixanes ----- 117 
Marsa ----.. 143 

Marsous ---... 75 
Mas d'Azil - - - . 150, 159 

,, „ Grotto du - - - - 159 
Massat ----.. 149 
Maulton ----.. 173 

Mauray II7 

Maures, Chateau - - . . i27 
Mauvezin ----.. 153 
Maya I74 

,, Colde - - - - 160,174 
Melun ---... igg 

Mende 186 

Merens ------ 132 

Merial ---... 149 

Millas ----.. 117 

Millau ---.-. 187 
MoUnes -.--.. igg 
Mont-Louis - - 92, 103, 116, 117 
Mont-de-Marsan . - . 135^ 186 

Montargis -.-.-. igg 
Mont6e ---... 174 

Montolieu 103 

Montpelier- ----- I88 

Montrejeau - - - - -150 

Montsaun6s - - - - . 153 

Moulins ---... 186 
Moulis ----.. 149 

Moussoulens - - - - -103 

Moustajon ---... 39 
Musculdy ------ 173 



Kapol6on, Pont - - - . 64 

Narbonne ----- 137^ 133 

Nefiiach ---... 117 
Nestalas ------ 75 

Neste, Valine de la - - - - 45 



PAGE 
Nevers --.... igg 

Nice 188 

Nimes 188 

Niort ------ 149 

„ D6ffl6 de - - - 134 



o. 



Olagvie 

Olette 

Oloron-Ste.-Marie 

Orgambidesca, Col 

Orleans 

Osquish, Col d' - 

Ost - 

Ostiz 



- 174 

- 117 
91, 173 

- 189 

- 185 
160, 173 

- 75 

- 174 



P. 

Pamiers ------ 119 

Pampeluna . - - - . 174 

Panticosa ------ 91 

„ Bains de - - - - 91 

Paris 185, 186 

Pau 26 

PayoUe ------ 52 

Perohe, Col de la - - - 104, 116 

Perigueux 135 

Perpignan - - - - 131, 137, I88 

Perthus, Col du - - - - 118, 131 

Pessons, Cirque dels - - - - 180 

Peyre, La - ^ - - - - 132 

Peyresourde, Col de - - - - 52 

Pezens ------ 103 

Pioaussel ------ 112 

Pierre-Lys, Gorge de- - - -120 

Pimorent, Col de - - - - 119 

Pintes, Les - - - . . 173 

Plan 151 

„ de Ley ----- 75 
Plantaurel, Montagnes de - - - 156 

Poitiers 185 

PoUestres - - - - - -131 

Pontau ------ 39 

Port, Col de - - - - 133, 149 

Porta -.-... 132 

Port6 132 

Portel, Col du - - - - 118, 132 

Portet, Col de 149 

Portet d'Aspet - - . - 149 

Pourtalet, Col du - - - 76, 90 
Pourtazous-Devant - - - - 25 

Pradel, Col de 149 

Pradelle, Col de la - - - 104, 117 

Prades 117, 132 

Pragnferes ------ 64 

Prats-de-MoUo ----- 119 

Pr6chard-Josbaig . - . - ig2 
Preste-les-Bains . . - . 190 

Puigcerda ------ ng 

Puilaurens, Chateau de - - - 116 

Puivert 159 

„ Col de - . . . 159 

Puymaurens, Col de - - - 119 

Puymorens, Col de - - - 118, 132 
Puj-yalador - - - - -103 
Py, Ool de ... - 150, 159 



196 THE PASSES OF THE PYRENEES. 



Q. 



Quillan 

Quillane, Ool de la 



PAGE 

103, 132 

- 101 



R. 

Eavi, Pont de 38 

Raynaude - - - ^ - - 159 

Bebenty, Gorges de - - - - 120 

Revel 103 

Eia 117 

Eibas 116 

„ Bains de - - - - - 116 

Eigat, Col de - - - - 104, 116 

Eimont ------ 159 

Eioupregan ----- 149 

EipoU 116 

Eodome ------ 135 

Eoi, Pont du 39 

Eoland, Pas de 173 

Eoncevaux ----- 173 

Col de - - - 160, 173 

Eouffiac d'Aude - - - - 103 

Eoumigas, Val 81 

Rozier, Le 187 

EufEec 185 



s. 



S. Antonio, Port de - - - - 89 

St. Aventin 52 

St. B6at - - - - 39, 149, 158 
St. Bertrand-de-Comminges - - 158 

Ste. Enimie 187 

St. Etienne-de-Baigorry - - - 78 

St. Plour 186 

St. Gaudens 158 

St. Girons - - - - 149, 158, 159 
St. Jean-de-Luz - - - 160, 174 

St. Jean-le-Vieus - - - - 173 
St. Jean-Pied-de-Port - - - 173 

St. Just 173 

St. Lary 149 

St. Ltooadie ----- 116 

St. Lizier 153 

Ste. Marie-de-Campan - - 24, 40, 52 
St. Martin-du-Oanigou - - - 113 
St. Martin Lys - - - - 103 

St. Martory 152 

St. Paul 115 

St. Paul de PenouiUet - - - 117 
St. Sauveur-les-Baiiis - - - 54 

SaiUagouse ----- 116 

Saissao ------ 103 

Sal^chan 158 

Saleis 190 

„ Port de 190 

SaUfes-du-Salat - - - - 152 

Salient 90,91 

Saragossa ------ 88 

Sarrance ------ 91 



PAGE 

Saurat 149 

SeneguS ------ 87 

S^oube, La ----- 52 

Sept-Prferes, Ool des - - - 118, 132 

Serdinya 117 

Seriail, Le 39 

Soldeu 183 

Somport, Col du - - - 76, 91 
Sorduren ------ 174 

Sorgeat 132 

Soulom 65, 75 

Soulor, Col de - - - - 66, 75 

Souraide ------ 174 

Surba 149 



T. 

Tarascon - 149 

Tarbes 26 

Tardets 162 

Teil, Col d'Bl - . - - 150, 159 
TernSre, Col de - - - - 104, 117 

Thu6s 117 

Tosas, Col de 116 

Toulouse - - - - 92, 103, 119 
Tourmalet, Ool du - - - 13, 24 

Tours 185 

Trou du Cur6 120 



u. 

Ur 133 

Urdas 174 

Urdos 91 

Usson, Bains d' - - - - 103 

Ustaritz 173 



V. 

Valcabrfere- ----- 158 

Valcarlos 173 

„ D6fll6 de - - - - 168 

VaUra, VaUey of the - - - 179 

Vatan 185 

Velate, Ool de - - - - 160, 174 

Venta-Arraiz 174 

Venta-Quemada . - - - 174 

Vergez ------ 173 

Vernet-les-Bains - - - - 117 

Vicdessos 145 

Vich 116 

Viella 25, 39 

Vierzon-VUla . - - - 185 

ViUanua - 91 

Villanueva- ----- 174 

VDlefranche-de-Oonflent - - - 117 

Vinca 117 



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